Carmelo's biggest downfall

[strumpfasaurus]

Take this for what it is worth. But I think Carmelo's biggest downfall is that he just happened to be in the same class as Lebron James which is why everyone thinks hes overrated. Lebron James may end up as one of the greatest three basketball players of all time and because him and melo were in the same draft class played each other in high school were good friends, and came in with insane hype (Lebron the King) (Melo the Super frosh.)

Melo has had a great career. Yes he could be better but so could everyone. 5 all star games 4x all NBA teams, snubbed from rookie of the year. Olympic gold medal, NCAA championship ring. If you remove the Lebron Melo comparisons which aren't really fair (Lebron 6'9 270 runs as fast as Iverson, Passes as good as Rondo, As strong as Blake Griffin can do it all come on.) He's had a great career and doesn't deserve all the hate he gets it's just he will forever be in Lebron's shadow. If Carmelo gets drafted in 02, or 04, people would look at him in a different light. Also take into account I believe 5/8 play off exits came from eventual NBA champions.

 

[jdubs30]

Absolutely he gets compared to LeBron too much; and now Bosh has a ring, and Wade has 2. Carmelo needs one to justify his career.

 

[albanycuse]

one of the biggest downfalls is that he didnt stay at Syracuse longer.

 

[CuseFaninVT]

His biggest downfall is that's he viewed as lazy. If he gave as much of himself on the defensive end as Lebron does, there would be a real question about who is the best player in the game. Or at least who is the second best. People hate professional athletes who are perceived as lazy. That's pretty simple.

Let me state, I think he's a better defensive player than he is given credit for, but not at James' level.

 

[Brian Orange]

Absolutely he gets compared to LeBron too much; and now Bosh has a ring, and Wade has 2. Carmelo needs one to justify his career.

I'm not agree or disagreeing with you on the ring thing, it's just weird that a guy that has an NCAA title and a gold medal still needs to prove himself as a winner.

 

[Knicks411]

I agree with this. I think if Melo wasn't in that draft class, then the general perception of how good he is might not be quite as high as it is right now. And yes, there are the constant comparisons to Lebron, which aren't going to work out well for him.

I'm not agree or disagreeing with you on the ring thing, it's just weird that a guy that has an NCAA title and a gold medal still needs to prove himself as a winner.

To me, the gold medal doesn't really mean anything. Maybe that's going too far, but the US should win the gold medal every 4 years; they easily have the most talented team in the world. But yes, Melo was the guy for an NCAA title team. Should count for something.

 

[RandygoCuse]

Absolutely he gets compared to LeBron too much; and now Bosh has a ring, and Wade has 2. Carmelo needs one to justify his career.

Let's not forget Darko Milicic was in that draft class

 

[sandman525]

I think most of the criticism of Melo is based on the fact that he's only made it out of the first round of the playoffs once. And the perception (fair or not) is that his lack of playoff success is due to a lack of effort on defense and an unwillingness to move the ball.

I honestly don't think him being in the '03 class has that much to do with how people view Melo. I think it's almost entirely due to the fact that he's regarded as a top 5 or 10 player who has a 2 - 9 record in playoff series.

 

[RandygoCuse]

I'm not agree or disagreeing with you on the ring thing, it's just weird that a guy that has an NCAA title and a gold medal still needs to prove himself as a winner.

Yeah, and don't forget his teams have made playoffs each season. Is Lebron better? Absolutely. However, I don't think it's fair to say a guy with an NCAA title, a gold medal and the aforementioned playoff streak is selfish.

 

[caw]

Not being drafted by the Pistons at #2, if he had been able to convince them he was worth it, he would have a ring or two right now.

 

[sandman525]

Yeah, and don't forget his teams have made playoffs each season. Is Lebron better? Absolutely. However, I don't think it's fair to say a guy with an NCAA title, a gold medal and the aforementioned playoff streak is selfish.

I'm not criticizing Melo when I say this, but considering that over half the league makes the playoffs, I don't think simply making the playoffs is any sort of accomplishment for a player of Melo's stature.

 

[RandygoCuse]

I'm not criticizing Melo when I say this, but considering that over half the league makes the playoffs, I don't think simply making the playoffs is any sort of accomplishment for a player of Melo's stature.

True, I just think it is something special to do it every year. Very few players have, and those guys are all known as winners.

 

[Knicks411]

I honestly don't think him being in the '03 class has that much to do with how people view Melo. I think it's almost entirely due to the fact that he's regarded as a top 5 or 10 player who has a 2 - 9 record in playoff series.

I think it's possible if he doesn't get drafted the same year as Lebron he isn't considered a top 5 or 10 player in the league.

 

[sandman525]

I think it's possible if he doesn't get drafted the same year as Lebron he isn't considered a top 5 or 10 player in the league.

Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see how being drafted the same year as Lebron has helped Melo's reputation. I think people view him as a top 5 or 10 player because he's averaged close to 25 a game for his career, and is an unstoppable offensive force at times. I don't see what that has to do with Lebron.

 

[orange03]

Love Melo for what he did for us here, but he's become wayyyy too Hollywood and not enough player. Not saying he doesn't put in the work to get better basketball wise, I honestly don't know if he does or doesn't, but he seems content to just be in the spotlight. I thought the same of Lebron, but you have to give the kid credit for what he's done on the court. I really don't like the kid, but he was an absolute monster all year.

 

[Knicks411]

Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see how being drafted the same year as Lebron has helped Melo's reputation. I think people view him as a top 5 or 10 player because he's averaged close to 25 a game for his career, and is an unstoppable offensive force at times. I don't see what that has to do with Lebron.

I dunno; I think he was hyped up a little more because he came in with a star studded draft class. I could be totally off on that, that's just kinda my gut feeling.

 

[PeteCalvin]

Not being drafted by the Pistons at #2, if he had been able to convince them he was worth it, he would have a ring or two right now.

Carmelo wasn't drafted #2 because Larry Brown is a stubborn douche bag. Now look where he is. Carmelo was the best all around scorer on the 2004 Olympic team, yet Brown wouldn't play him (or James or Wade) because he was a rookie. Brown hates young players. When Melo spoke out against Brown, he was labeled as a problem child. In retrospect, Carmelo was right to question Brown about his management of that team.

I really hate the Lebron - Carmelo comparisons. I still say that if I needed a bucket with 5 seconds left, I'd give it to Melo.

Also, if there was no Carmelo '03, Durant doesn't win NCAA POY as a freshman. Melo lost player of the year to TJ Ford only because he was a freshman. A lot of voters looked stupid that year.

 

[jdubs30]

re: Melo and Detroit. It's an interesting topic for sure. I don't think he really fit their style, on defense or offense. So it's impossible to predict if he would have won a title(s) there or not. Logic says that if you plug in Melo and take out Tayshaun Prince, the answer is obviously yes; but I'm not sure it would have played out that way.

Getting to the playoffs doesn't mean anything. How many top 15 players miss the playoffs consistently? Like someone said above, half the league gets a playoff spot. Chris Paul got to the postseason in New Orleans despite having pretty much nothing around him. I believe we've had a number teams that barely finished over .500 make the playoffs in the past decade. Melo is simply too good (and has been on pretty solid teams) not to have more playoff wins under his belt.

 

[NailstheCusefan12]

You've also got to look at those teams the Nuggets lost to in the first rounds. San Antonio in 2004-05; Spurs won the title. Clippers in 05-06; an absolute disaster. Lakers in 07-08; Lakers lost in Finals. Lost to Lakers in 2008-09 in Conference Finals. If a few bounces go the Nuggs way, they win that series. Lakers win that title. Lost to Utah in 2009-10 as the team unraveled and GK missed the playoffs while battling cancer.

As a homer, I slightly forgive Carmelo for the lack of playoff wins as the West was unbelievably strong during the years Melo played for the Nuggets. He faced Duncan, Ginobili, and Parker during their prime years and then the Lakers when they revamped and dominated. Denver was saddled with K-Mart's contract and a few other questionable personnel decisions, which is far from Melo's fault.

 

[jdubs30]

You've also got to look at those teams the Nuggets lost to in the first rounds. San Antonio in 2004-05; Spurs won the title. Clippers in 05-06; an absolute disaster. Lakers in 07-08; Lakers lost in Finals. Lost to Lakers in 2008-09 in Conference Finals. If a few bounces go the Nuggs way, they win that series. Lakers win that title. Lost to Utah in 2009-10 as the team unraveled and GK missed the playoffs while battling cancer.

As a homer, I slightly forgive Carmelo for the lack of playoff wins as the West was unbelievably strong during the years Melo played for the Nuggets. He faced Duncan, Ginobili, and Parker during their prime years and then the Lakers when they revamped and dominated. Denver was saddled with K-Mart's contract and a few other questionable personnel decisions, which is far from Melo's fault.

Totally agreed. There is no doubt that the West was loaded and the East was crazy soft. Unfortunately the majority of people won't really discuss that when talking about Melo's playoff record. You're a top 10 player, you have to get it done. Even this year, the East wasn't particularly strong, but they still ended up getting Miami, the eventual champ. Had they gotten Chicago or Orlando, they probably advance.

 

[CuseFaninVT]

I still say that if I needed a bucket with 5 seconds left, I'd give it to Melo.

I think Lebron would as well.

(insert rim shot here).

 

[Eric15]

Carmelo wasn't drafted #2 because Larry Brown is a stubborn douche bag.

Is it possible that Brown drafted Darko over Melo for the simple reason that he knew the Pistons had ideal team chemistry and were in "win right now mode"? They won a title in 03-04 and lost in Game 7 of the Finals in 04-05.

Melo is a star (who could be somewhat immature at times early in his career) who needs to have the ball in his hands to be successful. If he gets drafted by Detroit, perhaps he ruins that perfectly harmonious lineup the Pistons had with Billups, Hamilton, Prince, Sheed and Ben Wallace. Darko, on the other hand, was more of a project player that would be content riding the bench and having limited playing team early in his career, and wouldn't stir the pot.

 

[CuseFaninVT]

Is it possible that Brown drafted Darko over Melo for the simple reason that he knew the Pistons had ideal team chemistry and were in "win right now mode"? They won a title in 03-04 and lost in Game 7 of the Finals in 04-05.

Melo is a star (who could be somewhat immature at times early in his career) who needs to have the ball in his hands to be successful. If he gets drafted by Detroit, perhaps he ruins that perfectly harmonious lineup the Pistons had with Billups, Hamilton, Prince, Sheed and Ben Wallace. Darko, on the other hand, was more of a project player that would be content riding the bench and having limited playing team early in his career, and wouldn't stir the pot.

No, it's just because he's an idiot. I just went back and looked at that draft again, and there are plenty of guys that were and are better and could have contributed in Detroit without destroying the lineup. Heck, Bosh is one. Collison.

 

[zeekay]

I'm not agree or disagreeing with you on the ring thing, it's just weird that a guy that has an NCAA title and a gold medal still needs to prove himself as a winner.

Adding to that if he does eventually get the ring he might be unique. Is there ANY bball player who has the trifecta? NCAA Championship, Olympic Gold Medal, and NBA championship?

 

[Eric15]

No, it's just because he's an idiot. I just went back and looked at that draft again, and there are plenty of guys that were and are better and could have contributed in Detroit without destroying the lineup. Heck, Bosh is one. Collison.

Sorry, I'm just not willing to accept that the only coach in the history of basketball to win both an NBA and NCAA title, and to lead 8 different NBA teams to the playoffs, is an idiot.