Question of the Day: Which team got the best deal in the Carmelo Anthony trade?

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Writers from around Tribune Co. weigh in on the topic. Check back throughout the day for more responses, and feel free to leave a comment of your own.

Baxter Holmes, Los Angeles Times

Quality over quantity.

Advantage: Knicks.

‘Melo might have signed with them anyway as a free agent, but the impending collective- bargaining agreement fiasco and the insanity of the NBA’s arms race made that a risk not worth taking.

Who cares if they gutted their roster? Nothing New York gave up compares with what it got in return: a young, top-five NBA player who wants to stay and play in New York.

Credit Denver, which emptied New York’s pockets in the deal and now has some pieces to rebuild. Toronto and Cleveland each got next to nothing when Chris Bosh and LeBron James left for Miami.

But anytime you lose your superstar, you’re worse off.

Just look at Cleveland this season, or Toronto.

And now, look at New York.

Shandel Richardson, South Florida Sun-Sentinel

The Denver Nuggets got more players, but the New York Knicks grabbed more appeal. Not only did the Knicks put themselves in position to compete in the tough Eastern Conference, they instantly became one of the league’s most-watched and marketable teams.

By making this move, the Knicks are once again relevant. When was the last time that could be said?

The trio of Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire and Chauncey Billups should be enough to cause at least a bit of fear among the conference’s heavyweights, the Boston Celtics, Orlando Magic and Miami Heat.

The Celtics, after all, are the only team in the group with better point-guard play. Billups’ addition has been way underrated. Critics are going to say New York gave up too much, but this move wasn’t made to win a championship this season.

If the Knicks can at least produce a competitive first-round match-up, it would open the door to potentially adding New Orleans Hornets guard Chris Paul next season. That’s when the true value of this trade will appear.