3. Carmelo Anthony
At 34 years of age, Carmelo Anthony’s best days are most definitely behind him, which wouldn’t make him the ideal candidate to have a breakout season.
Call this a renaissance then, because following a year with the Oklahoma City Thunder in which Melo averaged a career-low in points, many don’t believe the10-time All-Star has much to give anymore.
Assuming he’s willing to come off the bench, he’ll likely be afforded more touches in his sweet spots instead of having to play floor-spacer for his teammates, which will allow him to do what he does best for spurts at a time.
Such a role will also keep Melo fresher as the season wears on and will certainly take some of the pressure off him, going from the third member of a Big 3 to just another role player.
Mike D’Antoni has been known to increase the offensive production of just about everybody he coaches, and despite their bumpy history, he should be able to do the same for Carmelo by putting him in better positions to succeed — something that wasn’t always the case in Oklahoma City.