LeBron gave Carmelo idea of joining Knicks
LeBron James enters Cipriani's to attend the wedding of Denver Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony and LaLa Vasquez. (July 10, 2010) Credit: AP
Maybe LeBron James shouldn't be such a villain to Knicks fans after all. Apparently, he was the one who planted the idea of playing for the Knicks in Carmelo Anthony's head.
That occurred in July when James was talking a little smack at the New York wedding of the Nuggets star.
"If you want any chance against us in Miami, you'd better team up with [Amar'e Stoudemire] in New York,'' James told Anthony, who relayed the conversation this month in an interview with SI.com.
Shortly after that, Hornets point guard Chris Paul grabbed a glass of champagne and, to Anthony and Stoudemire, toasted the formation of "our own Big Three'' with the Knicks.
Anthony and Paul have since downplayed the moment as joking around, but by the end of the summer both had begun to employ exit strategies with their teams. Paul, who will be a free agent in 2012, has been pacified, for now, but Anthony appears to be only weeks away - the Feb. 24 trade deadline - from taking on LeBron's challenge.
Anthony won't be facing James at the Garden Thursday night's, but will Anthony be in Miami Feb. 27 for the last Knicks-Heat regular-season meeting? At least one thing is for sure: By then the Knicks, Anthony and the NBA will know what has come of this six-month courtship.
So for now Stoudemire must continue shouldering the burden with Raymond Felton, who at times this season has played well enough to make Paul seem less of a priority. But the way the Knicks' offense has struggled recently has made it clear that Stoudemire needs another star to share the scoring load.
The Heat won't have its Big Three in place, either, because forward Chris Bosh (high ankle sprain) stayed back in Miami. Dwyane Wade is expected to play despite a recent bout with migraines. He may wear tinted glasses because he has been sensitive to bright lights.
Without Bosh, the Heat will play Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni's favorite style - with a small lineup - featuring James at power forward. "Wherever he plays,'' D'Antoni said of LeBron, "he's going to be dangerous.''
It means that Knicks power forward Wilson Chandler will have to be an offensive threat to keep James from leaving him to double-team Stoudemire.
The Knicks are 0-2 against the Heat this season but went toe-to-toe with Miami in the first meeting Dec. 17 before losing their energy in the second half. In their second matchup on Dec. 28 the Knicks made a strong rally in the second half after trailing by 22 points in the second quarter.
Stoudemire said the Knicks, despite their recent 1-6 slump, are not intimidated. "Nobody is afraid of the Miami Heat,'' he said. "We have to play as hard as we can and see what we can do.''
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