An interesting idea could change the directions of two Eastern rivals.
The Boston Celtics have built a great supporting cast. They even have a young, dynamic coach in Brad Stevens. They are three-deep in some positions, like point guard and power forward.
Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge had some "meaningful" quotes on ESPN that may be construed as a clue to what he may do next.
"I think [disruptive personalities are] a problem in any locker room," Ainge said. "There's a time -- first of all, we have good character on our team right now and we have some mature kids, even though we don't have an old team. I don't think it's ever a good idea to have players that are disruptive to your team, on the court and off the court."
Some names that comes to mind when the term "disruptive personalities" would be centers DeMarcus Cousins and Dwight Howard. These players have had multiple brush-ups with coaches, officials or fellow players and even got some of them fired. Is this Ainge's way of saying that he's not interested in acquiring them even if they do fill a need for the team?
"I think the one thing that we could really use is a go-to scorer," said Ainge. "We have some guys that have carried us -- Kelly [Olynyk has] carried us, Avery [Bradley has] carried us, Isaiah [Thomas has] carried us, [Jared Sullinger has] carried us at moments during the season, Evan Turner has carried us -- but it would be nice to find another player that's a reliable scorer at the end of games, night in and night out."
On that note, some names that pop up as "go-to scorers" are Kevin Durant, James Harden or Carmelo Anthony. All three have been scoring champions at a point in their career.
Recently, Bill Simmons floated an idea on his podcast, sending Carmelo Anthony to the Boston Celtics for the Brooklyn Nets' unprotected 2016 draft pick, James Young, David Lee and Jonas Jerebko's expiring contract.
Melo is probably the go-to scorer most likely available in trade among the three players mentioned. The value of the Brooklyn Nets' unprotected pick is fluctuating with every win/loss of the team-who have no reason to tank.
The key here is that the Boston Celtics are on course to make the playoffs and it's too early to write off the Knicks. Sometime later in the season, this might be explored. Will Phil Jackson bite is this was placed on the table?
The Zen Master is ready to experiment and think of the long-term, as reflected in his choice of drafting Kristaps Porzingis, but he might be pressured by the fan base to keep their star.
This is one evolving storyline that should be monitored in the NBA. In the podcast, it was mentioned that the Knicks "would probably not get a better offer than that." Every year, Carmelo's value drops, and Phil Jackson knows it.