THE NBA had its opening week, and it’s the signal for early season overreactions. There will be no usage of the phrase “small sample size” here.
The Carmelo conundrum
The trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo would have rocked the foundations of the NBA two seasons ago, but could it end up as another cautionary tale? The Heat seem to be facing the Carmelo Anthony conundrum in 2011.
It’s also called the New York Knicks’ guide on “How not to do a trade.”
To recall, when the Knicks traded for Anthony, they gave up so many pieces that they were no longer considered a contender. The Knicks were gutted and Carmelo could hardly carry it, and the team never saw the success they projected when they pursued a superstar.
In contrast, the Denver Nuggets’ GM back then, Masai Ujiri, cemented his reputation as one of the most astute executives of the league for mitigating a disastrous situation (a superstar demanding a trade), and actually ending up with a more well-rounded team.
It’s the same situation for the Heat in their first four games, all losses and places them currently as the worst team in the league.
Your two best players are practically playing the same position. With the current NBA’s shooting and pace, that can usually work if they are guards like Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
But for two frontline performers, it’s much trickier.
Funny how the Heat could use players like Tyler Herro and Jaime Jaquez at this time, but they aren’t there anymore. It’s a situation that coaching adjustments may not be able to fix, and considering the depth of the Eastern Conference, the Heat may end up not making the playoffs.
It’s too early a prediction, but that is the point of this exercise.
The Heat may not regret pursuing Giannis, but letting go of all their pieces stings. Perhaps they should have negotiated to keep one of their scorers.
Kessler’s mercy game
The popular meme with Wolverine regretfully holding a picture could very well be the Utah Jazz with Walker Kessler.
The Jazz has been on rebuild for eternity, and now they have the third and second overall picks of the past two drafts (Ace Bailey and Darryn Peterson), they should have the pieces for a leap this year, especially since they still retained Lauri Markkanen.
Kessler would have been a fine defensive anchor for the team. Since he was injured the entire season, his impact was unfairly diminished. Thus, when it was time to pay him, they took the Lakers’ offer instead.
That’s what separates good executives from average ones — they see something in a player that their current team does not.
For Kessler, it was blatantly obvious that he was what the Lakers’ needed. It was not entirely a loss for the Jazz. The Lakers needed Kessler more than they did, and they took quite a haul. Pundits even claim that the Lakers overpaid for 7’2 center.
However, Lakers GM Rob Pelinka would draw the ire of their fans if he didn’t seize the opportunity. Kessler had a phenomenal debut, but had his worst game so far when he faced his former team.
That’s partly because the Jazz are a sound defensive team even without him. But they would be better with Kessler.
The Jazz did get two unprotected first-round picks for the future. But for now, they have Jaxson Hayes, the center that the Lakers didn’t re-sign. The Jazz are finding out why.
The Jazz, by the way, are riddled with injuries again.
Let the wrong one go
The Cleveland Cavaliers let Ty Jerome walk, and he flourished in the perfect situation.
Jerome is leading the league in scoring early this season before he went back to Earth. It’s a situation where the Cavs did not need him much since they will heavily use James Harden and Donovan Mitchell in the backcourt.
However, they retained Sam Merrill instead of Jerome, and that’s not looking too good now, especially since the salaries are not too far off.
This is a choice that could haunt the Cavs when any of their primary guards get injured, or Harden disappears again.
