The Two Sides of the Trade

Twitter has been blowing up today with speculation about when and whether Carmelo Anthony will be traded from the Denver Nuggets. If, as expected, Anthony heads to the Nets, it will be the culmination of the most buzzed-about offseason that any sport has ever had. The lesson the NBA has learned is that player movement is great for building interest in a league, and that trades in particular (with ramifications for multiple teams, for multiple years) are the ultimate source of fan interest. Nobody does trade rumors like the NBA, as fans and media members alike cannot resist talk of expiring contracts, conditional first-round picks and mid-level exceptions.

The Carmelo story lies in stark contrast to the NFL's biggest personnel story this week, the failure of the San Diego Chargers to trade disgruntled wide receiver Vincent Jackson. For mysterious reasons, the NFL has never embraced trades, particularly when compared with the NBA. Rather than allowing teams to use trades to make a playoff push, the NFL has the ridiculously early trade deadline of October 19. And when trades do take place, they're nearly always for draft picks instead of known commodities. While the NFL certainly isn't desperate for attention, the league would be wise to include more trade-friendly provisions in their upcoming collective bargaining agreement. Roger Goodell could learn a thing or two from David Stern.