Thunder general manager Sam Presti made two significant moves to improve the team this offseason. The first came in July, a trade with Indiana that acquired All-Star forward Paul George, and the other coming on Saturday: A deal to bring in Carmelo Anthony from New York.
The move shocked fans and players alike across the league. Few believed Presti had the necessary pieces to pull off a deal, but both Anthony and the Knicks held an urgency to bring their year-long drama to rest before camp opened on Tuesday.
Anthony, according to ESPN, was heavily recruited by both Russell Westbrook and Paul George to waive his no-trade clause. George recently spoke to Sam Amick of USA TODAY about the deal, expressing his excitement for the upcoming season.
“This feels like a championship team,” George told USA TODAY Sports. “I’m in a good place. I know Russ (Westbrook) is in a good place. Melo is motivated more than ever…You put us three together, who all have something to prove still, (and) we’re going to be a special team. We have a young group, a lot of talent here, an unbelievable coach (in Billy Donovan), (and) as you see, a front office that’s willing to do whatever it takes to improve the team. It just has all the makeups to be a great organization and a chance to put championships together.”
George also mentioned how he and Melo had discussed playing together in the past. Back when the two played for Team USA in 2016, when George was a Pacer and Carmelo was a Knick, the possibility was first raised.
“Well Russ and Melo, they’ve had a relationship far longer and way before me and Melo had a relationship,” George said. “Those two have been on USA teams, and then when I got the chance to play with Melo on the USA team. I expressed (and) he expressed how much we wanted to play alongside each other in an NBA uniform. And then when we both were presented this opportunity this summer, and knowing Melo wanted to opt out and wanted to move on, we’ve connected. We talked, and he expressed again – ‘Hey, I would love to come join you guys and be a part of what you guys have got going there.’ And then from there, it’s a no-brainer. We run with it, and it came to life.”
Carmelo Anthony is reportedly expected to be in attendance when the Thunder open training camp on Tuesday. The team’s first regular season game is on October 19 against the New York Knicks, Anthony’s previous team.
