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Report: LeBron James Wanted Cavs to Acquire Carmelo Anthony But Was Rejected
- Updated: August 22, 2019
LeBron James hasn’t had an opportunity to play with his good friend Carmelo Anthony yet, but it is not for lack of trying, apparently.
According to Kendrick Perkins, James had requested Cleveland Cavaliers management to trade for Anthony previously, but his request was denied. In a running conversation that he had with a Twitter user, Perkins revealed that the former Cavs superstar was more than open to the idea of playing alongside Anthony.
How do you know Bron haven’t went to the Lakers and told them to sign Melo? I’ve witnessed GMs Tell Bron no several times! Bron tried to get Melo in Cleveland and the Cavs told him no!
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) August 21, 2019
I thought Melo didn’t wanna go to Cleveland but I’m not in or been in the NBA so I can’t speak on that but I did watch his interview on ESPN and he didn’t say that
— Birdman843 (@byrdman843) August 21, 2019
Man Bron told the Cavs he wanted Melo and they Cavs said no to him.
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) August 21, 2019
There’s no telling when this happened since Perkins was only on the Cavs during the 2014-15 season and for a brief time in 2017-18.
But Perkins may have been referring to the summer of 2017 when the New York Knicks, Anthony’s team at the time, were looking for a new destination for their troubled star. Kyrie Irving wanted out of Cleveland, giving them the opportunity to trade him to the Knicks in exchange for Anthony.
Ultimately, the Cavs chose to send Irving to the Boston Celtics while Anthony was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Another instance when Perkins could have witnessed James asking management to trade for Anthony was during the 2014-15 season when the Cavs were one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.
But in order to make a play for Anthony, the Cavaliers would have had to offer Kevin Love and it’s unlikely that James would have wanted to lose the All-Star power forward, whom they traded for in the summer.
The Cavs also had the chance to send Love to the Knicks in exchange for Anthony prior to the trade deadline of the 2016-17 season. The Golden State Warriors had just acquired Kevin Durant over the summer and the Cavs needed more firepower in case they met in the Finals once again.
Some media members believed at the time that Anthony was better suited to battle against the Warriors than Love.
Regardless of what the circumstances were when Perkins observed James getting rejected on his request to trade for Anthony, the fact is, the Cavaliers rejected him. Fans are now left wondering what the Cavs’ title chances would have been had they pulled the trigger on a deal for the 10-time All-Star.
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