It’s never easy to leave home.
Whether you’re a 5-year-old kid heading to the first day of kindergarten, or a 25-year-old athlete leaving the town and team that shaped you, leaving home is tough.
But LeBron James was able to do it back in 2010, and he went on to win two championships in another city. Now, four years later, he is headed back to the place he used to call home, with two rings on his fingers and a load of young talent waiting for him in Cleveland.
Carmelo Anthony was sprung into a similar situation as James in 2010. After opting out of his contract with his hometown New York Knicks, Anthony heard pitches from Chicago, Houston, Dallas, the Los Angeles Lakers, as well as the Knicks. Anthony prolonged his decision, later narrowing his choice down to Chicago or New York.
As far as basketball fits go, Chicago was a dream destination for the 30-year-old Anthony. He would be joining a loaded team with a core consisting of Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson, as well as a proven head coach in Tom Thibodeau.
Instead, Anthony chose to re-sign with the Knicks and put his faith in newly hired team president Phil Jackson. In a statement on his official website, thisismelo.com, Anthony said, “In the end, I am a New York Knick at heart. I am looking forward to continuing my career in Orange & Blue, and to working with Phil Jackson, a champion who builds championship teams.”
Nobody ever said leaving New York was going to be easy for Anthony. But in the end, his legacy has to be called into question. Anthony’s talent has never been called into question, but his inability to come close to winning a championship will forever deter him from being mentioned with the greats.
His new five-year, $125 million contract (no, $5 million is not a “pay cut”) will eat up the majority of the salary cap space on a mediocre team that will be shooting for the offseasons of 2015 and 2016 as its best chances of building a championship-caliber squad.
Sure, he would have had to take less money to join the Bulls, but why does cash have to trump championships? Anthony would have made the Bulls instant title favorites, yet he chose the Knicks and is relying on a whole lot of “if’s” to pan out over the next few years for the Knicks to be competitive.
When James spurned his hometown Cavaliers and bolted for Miami in 2010, he noted how tough a decision it was. “I never wanted to leave Cleveland,” he said in his much-maligned “Decision.” “But I also felt like this is the greatest challenge for me is to move on.”
Anthony should have taken notes. He spent three and a half seasons in New York, but it just didn’t work out. End of story.
He could have taken the same path as James. He could have accepted the two-year offer that was on the table from Chicago and made two runs at a championship while Jackson retooled the roster in New York. Returning to New York was never out of the question. Instead, Jackson will now have less flexibility in the coming years to add to his team because Anthony’s near-max contract will be filling most of the cap.
When comparing the career paths of James and Anthony, both 2003 draftees, it is interesting to see the similarities along the way. Both led their teams in their first years in the league (LeBron in Cleveland, Carmelo in Denver), but never had enough talent around them to win it all. James hit the market in his prime, left his hometown to win championships, and now is returning home in hopes of winning more. Anthony, on the other hand, forced his way out of Denver and subsequently became a free agent at an older age than James, then chose to stay home rather than leave for a better opportunity in another city.
Some call it loyalty, others call it stupidity.
Ten years from now, we will look back on both of their careers and note the difference: James was willing to take the chance and leave home. Without his two championship rings, James is a great player. With his rings, he is considered one of the best to ever step foot on a basketball court. And how did he win those rings? By leaving home and making the best basketball decision.
In the end, rings matter, and James has two of them. Anthony has none and may look back at staying in New York as the reason why.