We all know the situation between the New York Knicks and Carmelo Anthony, as it has dragged out for the last year.
Now, it looks like Carmelo Anthony might want out of New York, as reports have circulated that his representatives has talked about a potential buyout from the Knicks.
Carmelo wants to remain with the Knicks and stay in New York. Phil Jackson feels that he doesn’t fit the offense of the Knicks and would prefer he play elsewhere. The issue with that is Carmelo Anthony has a full-blown no-trade clause from the 5-year, $124 million deal he signed three years ago.
Back when he signed the deal, Carmelo Anthony felt he might be on a playoff contender in New York, but it’s been anything but that. Instead, the Knicks have been one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference for the last three years.
They were able to land two lottery picks in the process; one of which was used on Kristaps Porzingis, but a lot of bad basketball has happened in New York. While some could put the blame on Carmelo Anthony, it’s tough to give it to him since he’s played at an All-Star level for each of those years.
More of the blame could be shouldered by Jackson himself, who has failed to put together a winning season since becoming the president of the Knicks. While many can point fingers as to why the Knicks have been in utter chaos, the bottom line is that is isn’t working between either side.
Carmelo Anthony is still in the prime stages of his career, but he’s also getting into the later stages at age 33. Playing with the Knicks won’t help his career any more than it could. While playing in New York gets him in the spotlight, the Knicks are years away from being a contender again in the league. If you want to look at it, Carmelo Anthony has essentially wasted away the last three years of his career playing for a bad team.
The Knicks are hesitant on giving Carmelo Anthony the buyout because they think he would bolt immediately to the Cleveland Cavaliers to play with LeBron James. That move would make sense, especially for Carmelo’s career, but the Knicks want to get something in return if they part with their best player.
The problem is that Carmelo doesn’t want to waive his no-trade clause and teams aren’t going to give the Knicks full value for what he’s worth in a trade, thus, a crossroads. And this is why the buyout might be best.
The Knicks can move on in their rebuild and by moving on from Carmelo, they can actually build the team around Porzingis. On the other side, a buyout can let Carmelo play elsewhere and possibly with a contender.
Whether it be with the Cavaliers, the Boston Celtics or anywhere else he wants, Carmelo would have that chance to do so. He would have the chance to play for a contender again. It’s the reason why he wanted to be traded almost six years ago from the Denver Nuggets to the Knicks. And by getting bought out, he’d get the chance to play for the one thing that’s eluded his career. That NBA Championship.
While many fans of the Knicks would be opposed to a possible buyout and seeing Carmelo Anthony play elsewhere, especially in Cleveland, the buyout might be best for everyone.