NBA Rumors: Carmelo Anthony to opt-out of New York Knicks contract

By Bryan Rose | Jun 22, 2014

Mar 21, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony (7) during the second quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center. The Knicks defeated the Sixers 93-92. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports /

While Carmelo Anthony’s tenure with the New York Knicks won’t be over on Monday (at least not technically), his contract will be as according to Frank Isola of the Daily News, Anthony plans to inform the Knicks on Monday that he will be opting out of his contract allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent.

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Such a move isn’t exactly shocking as many have felt Carmelo Anthony would eventually decide to exercise his early-termination offer and become a free agent, though he did wait until the last minute as his deadline to make such a decision is Monday afternoon.

Isola reports a source close to the former Syracuse Orangeman says the likelihood of Carmelo Anthony opting out is one hundred percent.

A person close to Carmelo Anthony confirms that Melo, as expected, will inform Knicks on Monday that he's opting out. "One hundred percent."
— Frank Isola (@TheFrankIsola) June 22, 2014

Of course, just because Anthony does opt-out (assuming the report is correct) doesn’t mean his tenure in the Big Apple is over as it’s simply a smart financial decision on Anthony’s part to opt-out. Currently Anthony would be paid $23 million dollars next season and while that is a lot of money, he’ll be able to secure himself a much longer, more lucrative deal by opting out.

Granted, it also does give him the ability to leave the Knicks in free agency if he so inclines, though his wife, LaLa, recently stated that she will have say in where Anthony plays next season and she is of course a native New Yorker, so one may think that gives the Knicks a solid chance at retaining the soon-to-be-free agent.