NBA Free Agency: 5 possible destinations for Carmelo Anthony as a Free Agent

Oklahoma City Thunder v Minnesota Timberwolves
Carmelo Anthony opted into his player option this year

Superstar Carmelo Anthony had just opted into his final year at the Oklahoma City Thunder, a player option worth $28 million. But this, along with the re-signing of Paul George and the free agency signing of Raymond Felton had put the OKC's salary bill over the $300 million mark, sending them way into luxury tax.

Also read: 5 Trade packages for Carmelo Anthony

But the high luxury tax that the Thunder had generated due to this has led them to begin discussions for either buying out Melo's contract or trading him to another roster in the NBA. This seems like a good decision for the Thunder as Anthony had an underwhelming season at the Thunder, playing as the 3rd option and still not being able to leave a mark on the team.

Here are the 5 possible destinations that Carmelo Anthony might end up at:

#5 Philadelphia 76ers

Philadelphia 76ers v Boston Celtics
Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid

The 76ers have emerged as a shock location for the much-maligned forward. They have the cap space to make the deal for a season. The Philadelphia 76ers are also a bit short on established and proven forwards, with Saric bring a great prospect and Covington being an erratic player.

Carmelo might be able to give the team some much-needed boost, both in terms of 3 point shooting and perimeter shooting. His defense is very suspect but Covington will be able to hide him there provided Anthony is able to find his form again this season. It's not too big of a gamble for them to go for him considering it's just a single year contract.

#4 Oklahoma City Thunder

Oklahoma City Thunder v Utah Jazz - Game Three
Will 'Hoodie Melo' make a return?

The Thunder are looking to either trade him in the next 7-10 days or to stretch out his contract and buy him out, essentially saving themselves $107 million in salary and taxes. But all of this is just heavily reported.

If Sam Presti is convinced that Carmelo Anthony is indeed going to become the missing piece in the puzzle that is the Thunder, he could very well keep him. Don't forget that Anthony is a former All-Star, leading the Nuggets and the Knicks all alone. He very well might be the 3rd choice at Oklahoma, but he still has that passion and as we saw in bits and pieces, the same talent.

#3 Miami Heat

Miami Heat v Sacramento Kings
Miami Heat could do well with a featured scorer on their roster

The Miami Heat is one of the top teams that is contending for Melo's signature this season. They have been in somewhat of a slump for a while now, with Dwyane Wade declining season by season and Hassan Whiteside, a player foreseen to be the next star of the franchise, has not lived up to his potential of late. Dion Waiters' season-ending injury last season almost ended their hopes of making the playoffs.

Carmelo can change the outlook of the franchise, either for the good or the bad. With Dragic coming into his own, he will lead defenders onto himself, allowing Carmelo with enough open space to sink his shots.

He can also be a very good wing player for the Heat, being a solid figurehead to the younger wings who he can take under his stead and lead them onto better things. But if the Melo we got at Thunder is the same Melo we get at the Heat, then they might have taken on more than they can handle.

#2 Los Angeles Lakers

NBA: FEB 13 Cavaliers at Thunder
Could we see LeBron and Melo playing together?

The Los Angeles Lakers are one of the preferred destinations for Carmelo. He thinks now with LeBron James also there, they can finally team up and lead the Lakers onto a title after a long long time. The Lakers also have the cap space and if LeBron wants to play with Carmelo, he will play with Carmelo.

The only problem seems to be that the Lakers already have a lot of established wings in James, Ingram, Kuzma, the latter of which are young and will only get better with time. The Lakers also have the contract of Luol Deng, which has been giving them headaches for a while. Taking on another bad contract this free agency would mean no other changes can happen for the Lakers this offseason.

#1 Houston Rockets

Houston Rockets v Golden State Warriors - Game Four
Houston Rockets are running short in terms of wing players

The Rockets is the top destination for Anthony and it seems like they are the team in the pole position to sign him as well. The Rockets were the best team in the regular season last year and almost beat the Warriors in the playoffs finals, losing 3-4 to some horrible shooting from their perimeter players and a Chris Paul injury.

Rockets have also just lost their best 2 perimeter players in Luc Mbah a Moute and Trevor Ariza to the Clippers and the Suns respectively. The lack of wing players makes this move seem very plausible.

But the only reason Mbah a Moute and Ariza were great in this team were because of their amazing defense along with some 3-point shooting. They kept the Golden State Warriors on their toes and denied them a lot of buckets.

Taking on Anthony as a replacement would certainly help them offensively, but defensively he will be of no help, especially if his last season is any indication of what is to come by. The Rockets also have some cap space limitations which might push them deep into luxury tax, considering they have Clint Capela still left to sign.

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Edited by Raunak J