LeBron, Kobe, D-Wade...Melo?

Remember the 2003 NBA Draft...LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and Carmelo Anthony, all selected in the top 5. Well we all know how James and D-Wade have fared...one is arguably the best player in the league, the other already owns jewelry and both are year in and year out MVP candidates. Even Bosh gets boasted about, his smooth outside shot and rugged inside the paint toughness. All three have GMs across the country counting down the seconds to the summer of 2010 when all will be free.

More or less, the forgotten man is Melo Yellow...but did we forget that many in the media and around the league felt he deserved the Rookie of the Year over King James, did it slip our mind that he was arguably more consistent than any other player on The Redeem Team and has amnesia caused us to overlook the fact that until recently his teams have generally outperformed Bron's?

Well maybe 2009 is the time, the time when we can feel comfortable adding Carmelo to the Tremendous Trio of James, Bryant and Wade. The former Cuse' stud has poured in 73 points in two games against the Lakers and has his Thuggets in the driver's seat as they head back to the Rocky Mountains.

Some would argue that the addition of Chauncey Billups, unquestionably the most proficient point guard in this year's playoffs, has sparked Melo to this meteoric rise. I can't disagree with you there, but I'll add something else to that concoction, it's an ingredient that David Stern loves to mix in his drinks...IMAGE. I suspect that Carmelo learned a thing or two from the pearly white smile of James, the hilarious commercials D-Wade does with Sir Charles and the people personality of stars like Dwight Howard. When this season began...gone were the cornrows, out was the menacing stare, no talk of pot possession or questionable behavior.

Maybe it's just me, but I suspect Carmelo grew a bit jealous of the likability of others in the league. This year's playoffs is his coming out party...he is just as unstoppable as those other guys, his defense on Kobe is stifling, his passion to win is apparent, his maturity...at last, has been revealed.