Carmelo Anthony isn’t a fan of the direction the New York Knicks are headed, and this might be his opportunity to ask for a ticket out of town.
Next: NBA Draft 2015: Which Teams Found Instant Fixes?
When exactly is the right time to jump off a sinking ship?
That’s the question Carmelo Anthony has asked himself in the past, as the New York Knicks have been atrocious for years and aren’t getting any better anytime soon. Despite draft night moves that were made to ensure the future of the franchise, the Knicks are still a few years away from winning and that’s something Carmelo Anthony doesn’t seem too happy about.
As we heard from Frank Isola on Friday, Carmelo Anthony was less than pleased with the Knicks draft night moves and that means we could see him have a change of heart over wanting to stay in New York over moving elsewhere to win a title that has long eluded him.
Should Melo use this as his chance to get off a sinking ship in New York or should he continue to stick it out and see if things work out?
If Carmelo is that upset over the trading of Tim Hardaway Jr, he needs to reassess things a little bit. The linchpin for the Knicks winning the NBA Finals wasn’t Hardaway and the lack of of young talent was a cause of concern for many who looked at the roster. There was nothing to love about the Knicks roster last season — nothing.
Trading J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert to the Cavaliers and watching them go the NBA Finals probably wasn’t fun for Carmelo, but lest we forget how poorly those two pieces were working in New York. Phil Jackson may be insane, but he is insane over his vision for the Knicks.
What fans should be asking themselves isn’t if Carmelo should use this growing rift as a ticket out of town, but rather should the Knicks use this as a chance to dump Melo’s max deal and cash in on his value?
There have been rumblings in the past that the Knicks might want to get out from under the weight of their star player and his $100 million-plus contract. Title contenders could swing a deal that lands them the All-Star forward, as Chicago, Houston and Los Angeles all have assets that could land them Melo and appease the Knicks in what they’re asking for him.
A trade out of New York might end up being best for all involved. When he signed his contract last summer, there was the understanding that there would be growing pains before the Knicks were good. But what Melo didn’t anticipate was being on the second worst team in the NBA and then watching it get dismantled to add young talent in Year Two.
This was a first-year plan that Phil Jackson is enacting in the second year of his partnership with Melo, which makes last year a complete and utter wash. That has to be what is bothering Melo about all of this — in addition to other factors — as there weren’t any good or proven players on the roster last year and that’s the same story heading into next year.
It’s hard to be excited about the Knicks if you’re Carmelo, as the team isn’t going to win next season and they might not even win in 2016-17. If New York is truly two or three years out from winning, then both Melo and the Knicks are best off sending the bulk of his max contract elsewhere.
Carmelo wins in that he will be playing for a winner while the Knicks win in that they won’t have to pay their superstar for five good years when they’ll really only theoretically be getting one of this plan is going to go as slow as it seems it will.
More from NBA
- Predicting NBA’s Christmas Day Schedule: Lakers, Warriors highlight slate of postseason rematches
- 3 reasons the Blazers should trade Damian Lillard to the Heat and 2 reasons they shouldn’t
- LeBron James, Giannis, Damian Lillard all want that Mbappé money
- Jaylen Brown signs richest contract in NBA history without a left hand
- NBA rumors: Pistons determined to trade Killian Hayes