Is Prince better suited for the Pistons, or would Melo be better with our lesser emphesis on defense. I was one that used to say that Prince was better suited for the Pistons, but is he now?

That was possibly true in the past, even though arguable, but it's not even worth arguing about today. Melo is at least 3 times the player Prince is, and the perfect fit for this club. Let's examine a few of the reasons why.

Melo isn't only capable of 30 point games, he's capable of 40-50 point games on a more than blue moon basis. Simply put, Melo is close to a first tier star, while Prince is a 2nd tier star.

Melo commands double and tripple teams from great defending teams like the Spurs. Can you imagine what Flip's offense would do with a mismatch like that?

Melo is a better shooter than Prince, and a better scorer. He has the one thing we've lacked since Joe got here, a player with a low post game that can't be stopped. Melo will get the score, or like Stack, get to the line, but unlike Stack, more reliably. Of course, if you don't see the value in being dominant down low, you probably discount what this brings to the team.

While Prince is leveling off, Melo is rising, and won't even hit his peak for another 2-3 years. The old faded arguments of Melo doing well on a weak team doesn't hold water anymore. Denver is a solid team with many players capable of scoring. The truth is that Melo is a rising superstar, and would be a real upgrade to this team, especially in the playoffs.

The other advantage of having Melo at the 3 is that he is all agressive all the time. Prince is passive at times, superstars are NEVER passive, it's not in their nature. As a matter of fact, that's one clear indicator of who is a star and who's not.

Of course, it would be nice to start Melo and have Prince come off the bench, but we know that won't work. The bottom line is that this team could use a Melo type player, and Prince/Ben/Sheed aren't that kind of player. The reason it would work now, and not earlier was the Melo wasn't as good as he is now, but more importantly, CB has matured int a lethal guard, and we don't need Prince as a point forward anymore. CB and Melo would scare opposing defenses so much that Sheed & RIP would have a field day.

I understand what you are saying... however I don't agree with every conclusion that you've drawn.

Prince is leveling off? This has been his best season so far.

The fact that Carmelo can still draw double and triple teams, means that he still isn't on that great of a team, or other teams would be afraid of doubling up on him.

The offense the Pistons run, doesn't depend on one guy getting 30 or 40 points per night. Maybe if we weren't so talented all around, and didn't play good team offense, we'd need someone to go for 30 or 40.

Our lesser defense? Are you saying that the Pistons no longer shut teams down? Half a season into this coach, and we're no longer one of the best defensive teams in the league?

If we had Carmelo trying to defend the other team's "top scorer", we'd be the ones forced to double and triple team.

That's what Tayshaun brings.

I have a hard time believing that Tayshaun is at some plateau. He needs to work on getting more consistent with outside shooting, and he needs to be more aggressive on offense. But when I say he needs to do those things, it's because I believe he can do them, not that he can't, and his skills have stopped developing.

Maturity wise, Carmelo is still a selfish little punk, in the mold of Spreewell, Kobe, or Iverson, where Tayshaun is, and always has been, mature and coach-able.

I'd take Tay any day.

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Sam,
I'm not sure that Melo makes his teammates better... he requires a large volume of shots... at some point it makes your offense predictable or worse teammates going into a shell for lack of touches (possibly leading to resentment).

Tayshaun is a nice compliment... he's certainly a better defender than Melo.... since he was a #27 pick he was a bargain... Melo will be looking for a max contract which will further deteriorate the quality of players on that team.

This chapter has not yet been completed... as we don't know what Darko will turn into or what value we'll get for him.

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With politicians the future lies ahead

Also have to wonder what 2 years of LB would have done for Melo. He could be a much better player than he is now.

or...... sitting the bench like Darko is.... remember how much Burn he got in the olympics from Brown. Carmello is not a Piston Type Player... and for that fact neither is wade. Bosh now.... that would have been the right pick with 20/20 hind sight.

However I still hold out hope that we will look back someday and realize we wasted so many hours of debate about our young player once he grows up and learns his trade.

Before you ask...

The DVD is called "Stop Snitching" and shows alleged drug dealers talking about what happens to people who cooperate with the police, and Anthony is standing next to one of them.

He is also seen on the DVD talking about his Olympic bronze medal and saying that he threw it in a lake. The man he stands next to later goes on to tell how he would take care of snitches by "putting a hole in their head." However, Anthony does not appear to be taking part in that portion of the discussion.

Anthony's former penthouse condo in Denver's Golden Triangle neighborhood was featured on the MTV show Cribs. His current home also was featured on MTV Cribs.

Nuggets star forward Carmelo Anthony faces a petty-offense charge after marijuana was found in his backpack during a search at Denver International Airport last week.

So far this has not been a great year for ‘Melo, but it’s not time to write him off yet. Though being passed substantially in the maturity department by James, (who is 7 months younger) Anthony is still only 20 years old and has plenty of NBA games to play. Hopefully with some good influences, he can learn how to keep himself out of trouble.

Just to name a few.

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I was going to say something accurate yet insulting about this thread. Instead I will simply register my non-agreement.

Whatever else after that is falling on deaf ears.

I hear what ya sayin Sam. I agree with parts of your post but not all. IMV, the better question is Melo vs. Darko.

I would argue that Melo and Prince could have co-exsisted. In our championship year, Melo could have eliminated the "small ball" lineups to some extent (assuming LB would have played him). Melo brings a different look than Prince to the table. He is nowhere near the defensive player Prince is but miles ahead offensively; at least in scoring.

Last year he would have replaced Ham in the lineup (and prolly got more minutes). There can be no question that would have been an upgrade. Plus Prince would have received more rest. This year we prolly would not have acquired Evans as Melo would take those minutes under Flip.

I don't buy the "selfish" argument as players (as proved time and time again) behave differently on a contending team with a tradition and with veteran leadership. Melo WANTED to play here from day one. I do agree with Merc that he would be looking for a max contract eventually and that MAY prove to be problematic in the future.

Having said that, I approved the selection of Darko at the time; based on the hype and the relative shortage of 7 footers. But in hindsight, I'd go with Melo in a heartbeat. We might have been better served developing Nigel Dixon as the 5th big with the addition of Melo on the wings. Next lottery pick we acquire, my vote is to draft the best player available regardless of position. We pay the coach big bucks to figure out a lineup that maximizes the team's talent.

Hatter, you've got a couple good points (especially best player available)... had we drafted Melo or someone else there may have been some trades available to get a proven big....
Prolly most of us approved the Darko pick at the time.

Still holding out a glimmer of hope... I know there's some talent waiting to come out of the kid... even if it's like Horton on his Who-Ville dust speck.... Darko's been heard from the end of the bench "I'm here... I'm here"....after all "a person's a person, no matter how tall". lol

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With politicians the future lies ahead