NBA: Harden wants Melo in Houston

Carmelo Anthony, whose trade with the Atlanta Hawks is not yet official, is currently associated with the Houston Rockets. James Harden would like Melo to choose the Texans if the buyout with the Hawks takes shape.

“He would be a great backup for us,” Harden told the Houston Chronicle. “Melo is a seasoned veteran who simply wants to win at this point in his career. So it would be great if he was part of our team.

Anthony withdrew his $27.9 million player option with the Oklahoma City Thunder this summer. OKC wanted to pay less luxury tax, so the Thunder Melo traded with Atlanta and Philadelphia in a three-team trade to the Hawks. In return Dennis Schröder came to OKC. However, this trade is still not official.

But the Hawks have no interest in Anthony, they want to pay off the former star-forward. So he could join another team at the minimum veteran level – for example the Houston Rockets. The Texans are still looking for reinforcements after Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute left the Rockets at the Free Agency.

“We have many good guys in our squad,” Harden said anyway. “But we are still looking for reinforcements.”

One such could be Anthony. The forward scored 16.2 points last season, sinking 40.4% of his rolls.