NBA: 5 teams that should give Carmelo Anthony a chance

Carmelo Anthony is expected to be waived by the Chicago Bulls, making him a free agent. Here are five teams that should consider giving him a chance.

Carmelo Anthony is undoubtedly a future NBA Hall-of-Famer. Over the course of his 16-year NBA career, he has averaged 24.0 points per game while being a 10-time All-Star and making six All-NBA teams. Although he will not be remembered for his defense or leading his teams to deep playoff runs, he will go down as one of the purest scorers of his era.

Drafted third overall in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets, he spent seven and a half seasons being the star player before being traded to the New York Knicks. He then played in his prime and was the star for the Knicks for six and a half seasons, making the NBA All-Star team every season while there.

During his first 14 seasons, Melo only made it deep into the playoffs twice, once with the Nuggets and once with the Knicks, but neither time was able to make it to the NBA Finals. Heading into his 15th season, Melo was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Thunder had just acquired Paul George in a trade just months prior to trading for Anthony. The trio of Russell Westbrook, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony looked primed to be a true threat in the Western Conference.

It took a while for Melo to adjust to being the third scoring option on a team for the first time in his career, and statistically had his worst season. He was criticized for his lack of defensive effort and refused to come off the bench. It just seemed like he didn’t fit.

After a long up-and-down season, the Thunder seemed to have finally figured their team chemistry out and found themselves as the 4-seed in the West. After a first round loss to the Utah Jazz, the Oklahoma City Thunder and Carmelo Anthony made a mutual decision that it was time to part ways after just one season.

With one year and $27.9 million left on Melo’s contract, an agreement was made between the Atlanta Hawks and the Thunder to send Melo to Atlanta to be bought out, making him a free agent to sign with whoever he likes. Shortly after, Carmelo Anthony signed a minimum contract with the Houston Rockets and agreed to come off the bench.

After just 10 games in Houston, the Rockets decided that the chance they took on Carmelo Anthony was not working out, and he was removed from the rotation as they searched for a trade partner. Months went by, and no suitors for Melo came forward.

Finally, on Jan. 21, the Rockets were able to trade Carmelo Anthony to the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls have no intentions of using Melo on their roster, but rather will waive him, once again making him a free agent.

Assuming the Bulls do waive him and he clears waivers, what teams should look at making him an offer? Here are five teams that should take a look at adding Carmelo Anthony to their roster.