If LeBron and The Cavs wanted Carmelo, but according to Cleveland.com they believe it was more important to keep Tristan Thompson.
I agree with them.
Thompson is the guy who does all the dirty work, without him they would have been very limited defensively and on the boards.
Here are the details.
The Knicks wanted Thompson, 26, a center who like James is represented by Rich Paul. The Cavs told them no. Thompson is under contract for three more seasons, beginning at $16.4 million this year. Cleveland was willing to do a deal that would’ve cleared some contracts off the books, such as sending Iman Shumpert ($11 million this year) and others.
New York also asked about one of Cleveland’s two first-round choices for 2018, and the Cavs weren’t about to part with either.
It shows how low Melo’s trade value was.