NBA Rumors: Carmelo Anthony wants Knicks to 'fix this now'

New York Knicks’ forward Carmelo Anthony is reportedly going to opt out of the final year of his contract and is leaning towards leaving the Knicks in favor of a contender.

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The Chicago Bulls and Houston Rockets are considered the favorites to land Anthony, but the Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat are also going to be in the mix. The Knicks are still going to do whatever they can to retain Anthony and their recent meeting was leaked to the press.

Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders believes reports of Anthony’s meeting with the Knicks have leaked because Anthony is sending a message to the Knicks.

"The warning shot has been fired. If you don’t think that the reports that leaked after Carmelo’s meeting with the Knicks were not deliberate and strategic, you are crazy. Carmelo’s camp put it out there for a reason: ‘Fix this thing now or we are walking somewhere else.’Your move Phil.The Knicks have the money to offer Carmelo, and they are more than prepared to max him out to keep him in New York for the balance of his playing career. So money, as much as it’s been talked about, is not a problem. Not with the salary cap expected to eclipse $80 million over the next five years.The problem for the Knicks is they can’t just offload enough of the roster junk without ripping the team down to the studs and starting over gradually. That’s not what Carmelo wanted to hear."

It’s tough to see how the Knicks can improve before next year, which is why they want Anthony to opt in.

Anthony put up 27.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game last season and shot 45.2% from the field, 40.2% from beyond the arc and 84.8% from the free throw line.

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NBA Rumors: Carmelo Anthony wants Knicks to ‘fix this now’

By Andrew Melnick | Jun 16, 2014