Garden State of Mind

Haste makes waste.

It's a cliche I've been hearing since I was a small child and it's one that seems to apply to the Denver Nuggets' steadfast efforts in getting at least something of note for outgoing All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony. I don't fault the Nuggets in being aggressive in trying to move 'Melo before the trade deadline in February, but common sense tells you that, if a man makes it public he wants to play for the Knicks, he's probably going to drag his feet in agreeing to go anywhere other than New York.





Now, you'll find no bigger fan of the state of New Jersey than yours truly. I was born and raised there. My two favorite TV shows of the last decade have been "The Sopranos" and "Jersey Shore". "Garden State" is one of my favorite movies. However, even I know playing in Newark(where I spent the first decade of my life), even on a short term basis, is nowhere close to as appealing as playing in Madison Square Garden. There are reports that 'Melo's reluctance to sign the 3-year, $65 million extension that the Nets(and before them, the Nuggets) are offering is the latest road block to getting a deal done. Well, no shit, Sherlock! The man wants to play for the Knicks! The Nuggets will say publicly that the reason they won't strike a deal with New York is because the Knicks don't have the draft picks to offer that New Jersey does(which is bullshit because the Knicks could easily pilfer a first from some team wanting to add the services of young forward Anthony Randolph). The real reason Denver won't deal with New York, to me, is because they blame the Knicks(more specifically Amare Stoudemire and well-known cheerleader Spike Lee) for wooing 'Melo into wanting to leave Denver.









Maybe they're right. Or maybe Denver wants to paint New York as the villians as reasoning for not taking what seems to be the better deal. The current deal on the table from New Jersey has 'Melo and Chauncey Billups going to the Nets in exchange for a couple first round picks, All-Star point guard Devin Harris, promising rookie big man Derrick Favors, sharp shooter Anthony Morrow and a couple of guys who will be selling foot-long Chicken Carbonara subs at Quizno's within a couple months(the Nets would also get a semi-fossilized version of Richard Hamilton in exchange for the overpaid Twin Towers, Johan Petro and Troy Murphy). Now, Harris is solid point man with the ability to fill it up, but where does he fit on a roster that already has speedy playmaker Ty Lawson at the point? Are the Nuggets going to play both of them at the same time and try to overwhelm teams with their speed? As for Favors, he's still a couple years away. If he can't beat out Kris Humphries for playing time in New Jersey, where is he going to find minutes behind K-Mart, "The Birdman" and Nene?


The Knicks, however, will be serving up highly-touted forward Danilo Gallinari(who suffers from the classic Big Apple media overhype but is still further along than Favors is and fills a bigger need as a solid shooting small forward), Wilson Chandler(who is putting together a solid season and would really help the Nuggets with his ability to play multiple positions), rookie Landry Fields(like Gallo, another guy who is nowhere near as good as his New York press clippings, but still a decent two-guard) and perhaps a first rounder the Knicks would squeeze out in a deal for Randolph. That's not a better deal than the Harris/Favors poo-poo platter? For one, the Knicks are a 6 seed in the East(I know, hardly a huge accomplishment since the 7 and 8 seeds are both drastically under .500), while the Nets are barely afloat at 10-28. How can you expect 'Melo to be attracted to the idea of being shipped to a team that is 18 games under .500 and is two years away from moving to Brooklyn. Would a foursome of 'Melo-Rip-Billups-Brook Lopez turn things around and perhaps have the Nets sneaking in as a 7 or 8 seed(and in turn, getting annihilated by Miami or Boston in Round 1)? Maybe. Is it more alluring than being "The Next Big Thing" in the country's biggest sports market and teaming with Amare to become a poor man's Shaq and Kobe? Hell no!


So, look, Denver, let me save you, the hard-working fellows at ESPN who cover the ESPN, and the fans chomping at the bit for a deal to get done some time and aggravation. 'Melo's not going to New Jersey. He wants what every kid who grew up in the Tri-State area with the scant hope of playing in the NBA wants: to play in the Mecca of basketball, Madison Square Garden. You can try to sell him on the eventual move to Brooklyn. Jay-Z can try to hustle 'Melo with his silk tongue and allusions of grandeur, but even Jigga knows there's nothing like playing in the Garden. Do the right thing, Denver. Quit cutting off your nose to spite your face. Make the deal with the Knicks. Otherwise, you're just wasting everyone's time.