Derek Fisher wants to keep Carmelo Anthony with New York Knicks
By Chris Walder
The New York Knicks organization officially announced Derek Fisher as their new head coach during a press conference at the team’s training facility on Tuesday.
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Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports first reported on Monday that his deal would be worth $25 million over five years.
The 39-year-old Fisher played this past season as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder, averaging 5.2 points and 1.4 assists in 81 games.
Fisher touched on a number of topics during the conference, including Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony and his willingness to keep the seven-time in a New York uniform for the foreseeable future.
Fisher on Carmelo: "We want him to be here but ultimately he has that choice."
— Rod Boone (@rodboone) June 10, 2014
Fisher on Melo: "We will do everything to give him confidence... That we can get the job done."
— Ohm Youngmisuk (@NotoriousOHM) June 10, 2014
Anthony averaged 27.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists during the regular season. Despite his tremendous numbers, Anthony found himself on the outside looking in with the All-NBA Team selections, missing out on a spot for the first time since 2011.
He’s expected to test the open waters of free agency this summer and perhaps sign with a new team. It will be Fisher’s job, as well as that of team president Phil Jackson, to convince him to stick around.
The team missed out on the NBA playoffs with a record of 37-45, falling just one game behind the eighth-seeded Atlanta Hawks. Anthony’s focus is on winning a championship for the first time in his career. It will be interesting to see if the combination of Fisher and Jackson can help Anthony achieve his goals in that regard.