The Carmelo Anthony free agency sweepstakes still hasn’t determined a winner, but the New York Knicks look to be the favorite. The Knicks have the advantage of being able to offer more money than any other team, and there are the hometown roots for Anthony.
While it was reported that Anthony might want that max-contract from the Knicks, there are reports that he might be willing to take less than that to stay with the Knicks.
From the New York Post:
"Knicks president Phil Jackson told Anthony during Thursday night’s meeting in Los Angeles he can have the team’s maximum 5-year, $129 million contract if he wishes. But The Post has learned there’s a distinct possibility Anthony will still decide to take a little less than the max.One scenario would be Anthony starting at the max $22.4 million, but taking a 7.5 percent pay reduction in Year 2, as allowed by the collective bargaining agreement. That reduced salary for the 2015-16 season would give the Knicks a little more cap space next summer.Jackson has said he prefers for Anthony to take less than the max to give him more salary-cap flexibility in 2015 and 2016 to sign free agents."
If that works out to be the case, it seems like a solid middle ground for the two parties. Anthony gets top dollar, but at the same time is taking a friendlier deal to the team and their negotiations to try and sign free agents. The Post’s source also went on to say that money was never Anthony’s priority, rather making the team better, which explains his efforts to recruit Pau Gasol.