Melo in Portland

After a year away from the NBA, Carmelo Anthony is back Him joining the Blazers is a treat for every fan who wanted a last chance for him But it’s unclear if that’s what Portland needs at this point We all know what Melo can bring to the table. He’s a massive scoring talent But the Blazers have two big-time scorers in Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum already Aside from Rodney Hood, Hassan Whiteside and Anfernee Simons, who have been consistent on the offensive end If anything, what the Blazers need is better ball movement. They rank dead last in assists per game In fact, only 45.6 percent of their field goals come from assists, with no other team below 50 percent Adding Melo is doubling down on that strategy instead of a fix for that issue Signing him to a non-guaranteed minimum contract is a low-risk move, though His star aura may improve team morale Plus, and we can’t stress it enough, he can get buckets Even in his infamous 10-game Rockets stint, he scored 16.4 points per 36 minutes That would make him fifth-best in Portland Will Melo change the fortunes of the disappointing Blazers? Maybe not But if you’re going to take a gamble, you might as well do it with a future Hall of Famer

After a year away from the NBA, Carmelo Anthony is back Him joining the Blazers is a treat for every fan who wanted a last chance for him But it’s unclear if that’s what Portland needs at this point We all know what Melo can bring to the table. He’s a massive scoring talent But the Blazers have two big-time scorers in Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum already Aside from Rodney Hood, Hassan Whiteside and Anfernee Simons, who have been consistent on the offensive end If anything, what the Blazers need is better ball movement. They rank dead last in assists per game In fact, only 45.6 percent of their field goals come from assists, with no other team below 50 percent Adding Melo is doubling down on that strategy instead of a fix for that issue Signing him to a non-guaranteed minimum contract is a low-risk move, though His star aura may improve team morale Plus, and we can’t stress it enough, he can get buckets Even in his infamous 10-game Rockets stint, he scored 16.4 points per 36 minutes That would make him fifth-best in Portland Will Melo change the fortunes of the disappointing Blazers? Maybe not But if you’re going to take a gamble, you might as well do it with a future Hall of Famer