Panther's Perspective: Random NBA thoughts

Since the only major sports going on right now are the NBA and the NHL, and seeing how I don't care for the NHL, my column this week will be dedicated to the NBA and some of the stories that have surrounded the sport over the past week.

The biggest story from the past week has been Carmelo Anthony being traded from the Denver Nuggets to the New York Knicks.  The Knicks were hooked on the bait that the Nuggets threw out there when "rumors" surfaced that the Nets and Nuggets were very close to making a deal involving the aforementioned Anthony.  When the Nuggets floated the "rumor" that the Nets were willing to give up Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, and four first-round picks for Anthony, the Knicks took the bait and traded the farm in order to land Carmelo.

Although the Knicks traded away practically their whole team (sans Amare Stoudemire), they still will be a very scary team come playoff time.  They may not have much depth, but anytime you have a tandem of Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, and Chauncey "Big Shot" Billups, you're going to be a team to be reckoned with in April and May.  I'm not saying they're going to win a playoff series this year, but no matter who they play in the first round, whether it be the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls or Orlando Magic; the Knicks will give any of those teams a run for their money.

Now that Carmelo has found a home in New York, the next three superstars that could be on the move are Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, and Deron Williams.  All three of those guys become free agents in the summer of 2012 and it is already being rumored that Howard may leave Orlando to join the Los Angeles Lakers and that Williams will try to sign with the Knicks.  If things do go down that way, the NBA is heading for a brick wall.

Think about it, you'll have three "super teams" (Lakers, Heat, and Knicks) that will reign dominate for the next 7-10 years which would give no hope to the other 27 NBA markets nationwide.  Those markets would dry up for the NBA and the nationwide fan base will drastically decrease.  Sure, you'll have "super teams" in major media markets like New York and Los Angeles (which would give something for ESPN to dwell on for the next decade), but the average NBA fan doesn't follow players around the league from team to team.  The average NBA fan roots for a particular team and a particular city and if their team consists of Elton Brand, Lou Williams and Tony Battie, we all know they don't have a chance in hell of beating a Laker team that consists of Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, and Pau Gasol in a seven-game series.

What I'm trying to say is that if there are a few select "super teams" that are formed in the summer of 2012, the NBA will lose a lot of fans.  I'm not saying the players shouldn't be allowed to sign where they wish because they obviously should have the right; I'm just predicting what will happen if that is the case.

Lastly, let me just say that the dunks Blake Griffin attempted at the dunk contest last weekend weren't as good as everyone is making them out to be.  They were very impressive and unique, but they were not as good as the dunks Vince Carter attempted in 2000 and the dunks Dwight Howard attempted in the dunk contest of 2008.  Since 2000, Griffin's dunk contest ranks third in my book; he didn't even have the best dunk of the night.  That title belongs to Oklahoma City's Serge Ibaka who took off from the free-throw line to dunk it in.