The next few weeks will be interesting for the Portland Trail Blazers as they have signed Carmelo Anthony to a non-guaranteed contract. The Blazers desperately need a spark to their team as they stumbled out of the gates to start the season.

It's easy to see why they took a risk with Melo given the frontcourt situation they currently have. Jusuf Nurkic will not return until later in the season. Pau Gasol is struggling with his injuries as well. There isn't any decent power forwards that the Blazers can count on. Melo fills a need for the Blazers: he can fill out the four spot with ease while providing excellent spot-up shooting that will space the floor for Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum to operate on.

However, the question as to how the Blazers will be able to utilize Anthony's specific talents persist. If he acts the same way he did in his previous stops at Oklahoma City and Houston, he'll be shown out the door. It's a specific headache that Terry Stotts will have a tricky time adjusting.

Fortunately, there are ways for his team to add Melo to the circulation. The most obvious option would be to start him off the bench, making him the reliable sixth man the Blazers desperately need this season. Lillard and McCollum are carrying the team offensively, but there are no other people in the roster who can provide reliable scoring. The best options the team has in terms of scoring are Hassan Whiteside and Rodney Hood, both of which aren't really players you want carrying the scoring burden.

Article Continues Below

Having Melo lead the second unit will make the Blazers a lot tougher to game plan against. Melo is an elite scorer who can provide at least 15 points a night. Anthony is also better than most bench units in the NBA, and that will allow him to dominate without a problem.

The other option is to start him. Nassir Little may be the future power forward of the future for the Blazers, but the rookie's still too green to take over for the Blazers. Having him alternate minutes with Anthony should be able to give him much-needed experience while the Blazers benefit from the instant offense Melo offers. Having Little shadow Melo will allow the forward to pick up stuff from the forward and make minute improvements to his game.

There are a lot of other things the Blazers can do with him on their roster. They could even slide him to small forward if Stotts find a winning rotation. However, the power forward spot needs reinforcements, and that's where Melo will most likely slide into.

Both Melo and the Blazers are hungry. They want to prove the league wrong, and this common ground will help this experiment succeed. It's now up to Melo to accept his new role in the Blazers and help the team get more Ws.