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Carmelo Anthony, New York Knicks match made in money

By Jeff Weisinger

After all is said and done, Carmelo may end up staying in New York after all.Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
After all is said and done, Carmelo may end up staying in New York after all.Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /
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Although he won’t have an hour-long special on ESPN to announce where he will take his talents to for the 2014-15 NBA season, all eyes are on forward Carmelo Anthony, as everyone eagerly anticipates where he will end up during the NBA’s free agency period this summer.

So where does the (possibly) former Knicks all-star who averaged just over 27 points per game end up?

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Washington Wizards should sign this former first-round pick to a two-way contract
Washington Wizards should sign this former first-round pick to a two-way contract /

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    • Despite all of the rumors of Anthony potentially leaving the Big Apple for either Chicago or the Los Angeles Lakers (with the Houston Rockets and Miami Heat as the underdogs), the current front-runner in the Carmelo Anthony sweepstakes is… the New York Knicks?

    (Kind of makes you feel bad for all of those other teams who put up ads with Melo in their team’s jersey.)

    According to a report by Eliot Shorr-Parks of NJ.com, the 30-year old New York City native Anthony is expected to stay home in New York after the Knicks offered ‘Melo a five-year, $129 million contract.  The Knicks deal comes shortly after the Lakers offered him a four-year, $97 million max contract.

    NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski has even said that the Knicks are the “front runners” for Anthony right now.

    One source close to the recruiting process said that Melo “just wants to feel like he’s not all alone on the court.”

    In his meeting with the Knicks, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post, new Knicks president Phil Jackson told Carmelo that he can have the team’s maximum deal if he wishes. However if Melo does in fact re-sign with the Knicks, sources believe that he will decide to take less money.  One scenario has Anthony taking what seems to be a front-loaded deal, starting at the max of $22.4 million, then taking a 7.5 percent reduction in the second-year of the deal, as allowed by the current collective bargaining agreement. His reduced salary going into 2015-16 would give the Knicks more cap space for that summer’s free agency period, which may include the likes of Rajon Rondo, Paul Millsap, DeAndre Jordan, LaMarcus Aldridge, Danny Green and Amir Johnson, all of whom are projected unrestricted free-agents at the current moment.

    Anthony had direct questions for Jackson and new rookie-head coach Derek Fisher and left the Knicks meeting more confident about the team’s direction going forward.

    Although just about every sign has Carmelo staying in New York, there is a slim chance that he does in fact end up somewhere new next season.  The Lakers are still trying to sign him, along with LeBron James, and there’s a very slight chance he ends up in Miami, especially if the Heat in fact loses one member of their “Big 3.”

    Carmelo averaged 27.4 points per game last season for the Knicks, shooting 45 percent from the court, including 40 percent from beyond the arc.  He averaged a career-high 38.7 minutes per game, the first time he has averaged 38 minutes per game since the 2009-10 season with Denver.

    However, despite Melo’s solid numbers in 77 games last year, which also helped him notch his fifth-straight all-star selection, the Knicks missed the playoffs for the first time in three years, finishing 37-45 in 2013-14, highlighted by a 3-13 start before finally winning back-to-back games against the Brooklyn Nets and Orlando Magic.

    Melo has told people that he will make his decision after the July 4th holiday weekend.

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