Filed under: Basketball
New York is the city in which Anthony was born and lived for eight years. It is also the place where he can join the successful team built around Amare Stoudemire, who has helped the Knicks become strong for the first time in several years.
Other possible deals to trade Anthony have been in the works, but they've all fallen apart. One of the difficulties of structuring a trade for Anthony is that he can kill any deal by telling the other team that he wouldn't be interested in taking an extension from them. While it seems that $20 million per year is a lot of money for an athlete to earn, the reality is that it's really chump change compared to what professional basketball players would earn in a free and fair market. In 1996, Kevin Garnett signed a monster contract that would have landed him roughly the same amount of money that Carmelo will earn after his new contract. That's when NBA owners locked the players out and restricted their salaries. Since that time, NBA revenues continue going up, owner wealth goes up, but player salaries have remained at the same level they were over a decade ago.
Since leaving Syracuse University (I never met Melo while he was here), Carmelo Anthony has led an interesting life. He has played well, stayed out of trouble and seems well on his way to having an outstanding NBA career. I am not a big fan of the "One and Done" approach to college basketball that Melo used while he was at Syracuse, but I blame the system more than I blame Carmelo. In fact, the millions that our university and other NCAA institutions earned off Carmelo Anthony while he was here are better served in the pockets of he and his family.
Even Carmelo's wife, Lala Vasquez, has shown herself to be more than just a basketball wife. Rather than simply defining herself through her husband, she is an educated woman who's had a successful career in media. I am impressed by both of them, and it's my greatest hope that the craziness of NBA life doesn't undermine the beautiful marital bond they've created. As they move into the media circus of New York City, everything will be put to the test.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.