Klay Thompson vs. Carmelo Anthony

[Xiao Yao You]

I just feel like circumstances dictated that. Go watch young Melo. He was an elite athlete pinning balls on the backboard defensively. He played for a relatively speaking crappy nugget team who didn't prioritize defense at all. Wade played under Pat Riley. With Shaq. The context is just wildly different. A lot of these stars at the top aren't as far apart individually as it would seem.

you seem to be ignoring the intangibles. Wade had everything but the 3. Carmelo could score. Didn't bring you much else. Wade or Klay any day on any team. Winning a championship in a watered down NCAA doesn't change that

[dankok8]

Melo is higher all-time and definitely a better 1st option. As a 2nd option I'd probably go with Klay though. This comparison is a perfect example of portability differences. Melo is the better player but his value decreases on good teams. Klay is less valuable but his value increases on good teams because he's an amazing play finisher (3pt shooter), doesn't need the ball, and plays good defense. Whereas Melo's skills as an iso scorer become less valuable on an already good team.

However, there is a caveat that perhaps Melo if ever forced to be a 2nd option would defer and play more off-ball while focusing more energy on defense. He was a very good shooter after all. Thus it's possible I'm underrating Melo's portability.

[SaltyMeatballs]

Melo is better but I would rather have Klay in my team

This is basically my stance.

Melo might be a better and more skilled individual player, but if I'm building a team, I'd choose Klay without hesitation. He brings elite shooting and defense. He also isn't hurting the team's ball movement, unlike Melo.

[tpols]

you seem to be ignoring the tangibles. Wade had everything but the 3. Carmelo could score. Didn't bring you much else. Wade or Klay any day on any team. Winning a championship in a watered down NCAA doesn't change that

Like I said Carmelo had defensive talent but never played for a team that prioritized it. And if you swap them Wade wins nothing with those Nuggets or Knicks. You're not considering circumstance. The best player prime Melo ever played with was Chauncey billups... who was nice, but compared to Shaq and Lebron is a joke.

[tpols]

BTW Melo was taken before Wade or Klay in the draft.

[Xiao Yao You]

Like I said Carmelo had defensive talent but never played for a team that prioritized it. And if you swap them Wade wins nothing with those Nuggets or Knicks. You're not considering circumstance. The best player prime Melo ever played with was Chauncey billups... who was nice, but compared to Shaq and Lebron is a joke.

Who knows what the Nuggets do if they are swapped? A lot easier to build around one of the greatest players ever vs an over hyped high scoring sf. Obviously Dolan and the Knicks were a mess. Carmelo made it even worse by forcing a trade there instead of going there in free agency

[Xiao Yao You]

BTW Melo was taken before Wade or Klay in the draft.

So was Darko

[tpols]

Who knows what the Nuggets do if they are swapped? A lot easier to build around one of the greatest players ever vs an over hyped high scoring sf. Obviously Dolan and the Knicks were a mess. Carmelo made it even worse by forcing a trade there instead of going there in free agency

There's no way you can twist Wade winning with those Nuggets. And especially not with the Knicks. It's not possible. He only ever won with shaq and lebron. Powerhouse help. Not saying he isn't great but he clearly had way more help.

[Xiao Yao You]

There's no way you can twist Wade winning with those Nuggets. And especially not with the Knicks. It's not possible. He only ever won with shaq and lebron. Powerhouse help. Not saying he isn't great but he clearly had way more help.

Shaq on the downside of his career while Wade had one of the greatest performances ever to carry them. Maybe he doesn't win a title with Denver but they would have certainly been a lot better team. The guy was a winner. Carmelo not so much

[tpols]

Shaq on the downside of his career while Wade had one of the greatest performances ever to carry them. Maybe he doesn't win a title with Denver but they would have certainly been a lot better team. The guy was a winner. Carmelo not so much

Better than the WCFs? Doubtful.

Shaq was 2nd in MVP voting in 2005 and hung 20/10 on big efficiency vs Detroit in 2006. Sure Wade had a great Finals but he needed to break free throw records to do it. 100+ FTs in 6 games. Anybody can win if it's rigged.

[Xiao Yao You]

Better than the WCFs? Doubtful.

Shaq was 2nd in MVP voting in 2005 and hung 20/10 on big efficiency vs Detroit in 2006. Sure Wade had a great Finals but he needed to break free throw records to do it. 100+ FTs in 6 games. Anybody can win if it's rigged.

hard to imagine a team with Wade not doing better than a team with Carmelo. Some guys are special. Others just think they're special