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One-half of the "Banana Boat Crew" is teaming up in the City of Angels. Entering his 19th year in the NBA, Carmelo Anthony has signed a one-year deal to join LeBron James in Los Angeles, California.
With this deal, Anthony will play for his sixth different NBA franchise. He's spent the previous 18 seasons playing for the Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trailblazers and New York Knicks. After his sixteenth season in the league, it appeared that his career was over, but he was able to rebound with two solid seasons in Portland. Last season, he averaged 13.4 points per game while shooting 40.9% from beyond the three-point line.
The Lakers have been extremely busy during the offseason. Recently, the Lakers have added Malik Monk, Dwight Howard, Kent Bazemore, Wayne Ellington and Trevor Ariza to their roster. Not to mention, Los Angeles is nearing a deal that would bring Russell Westbrook to the Lakers. In exchange, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell and Kyle Kuzma will head to Washington to play alongside Bradley Beal.
Beyond the city of Los Angeles, there has been a lot of movement around the league as free agency kicks off. Leading the way, NBA Champion Kyle Lowry is expected to leave Toronto after spending a decade with the franchise. He hopes that joining the Miami Heat will increase his chances of winning another ring. Elsewhere, Oklahoma City Thunder Center Al Horford is expected to return to Boston in exchange for Kemba Walker. Flying under the radar, rising star Devonte' Graham is moving from Charlotte to New Orleans.
While many players are moving from team to team, others are working to finalize deals with their current teams. Mike Conley is working on a $72.5 million deal that would allow him to stay with the Utah Jazz for three more years. Adding on, Steph Curry has locked a $210 million contract extension to stay with the Golden State Warriors. Rounding out a chaotic run of transactions, Chris Paul has locked in a four-year, $120 million deal with the Phoenix Suns.
As NBA free agency heats up, the biggest domino has not fallen just yet. Kawhi Leonard opted out of his deal with Los Angeles Clippers, but he is expected to negotiate a deal to return. Still, there is a chance Leonard could jump ship and join the Phoenix Suns as they fight to return to the NBA Finals.
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