Schmeelk: In His Own Words, Melo, Knicks Seem Destined To Divorce
By John Schmeelk
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Over the past couple of weeks you could sense Carmelo Anthony's frustration with the Knicks starting to bubble to the service.
After the loss to the Golden State Warriors, he talked depressingly about how the team didn't bring a full effort. During the West Coast trip, he talked about his sit-down with Phil Jackson and how he got some "answers" he was looking for. He talked about the team's failure to recruit LaMarcus Aldridge last year and how he wants to help bring in a star point guard this offseason.
It's pretty obvious he isn't happy. But how unhappy is he?
Melo recently did a Q & A with Marc Spears of Yahoo Sports during which he offered as candid a set of answers as we've seen. To me, it is fairly clear that if the Knicks don't turn themselves into a championship contender by the trade deadline next season, or perhaps sooner, Anthony is going to ask to be traded. Here are some of the more telling quotes.
On his unhappiness with the state of the team:
"There was so much I kind of had to go through from the amount of players I had to play with every year, coach changes, GMs, presidents. Since I've been here I don't think there has been any consistency with the core that has been there. When I got there Amaré was there, and I figured I would be there for a long time. We had a run that year [East semifinals, 2012-13] with Jason [Kidd] and everybody.
"I had a feeling we would build off of that, even though those guys were kind of older. Just build off of that momentum, seeing the way guys wanted to play and guys that we wanted around. And the next year they cleaned everything out…I just shake my head to it. Someone asked me, 'Why haven't you complained about it?' Complaining doesn't get me anywhere. I always feel like I can get through the situation and make it better."
This sounds like a player that is tired of a rebuilding process. The roster could be overhauled again this offseason, especially if Arron Afflalo and Derrick Williams opt out. The changes aren't stopping anytime soon. Anthony continued to discuss with Yahoo's Spears what steps the Knicks need to take to get better.
"This is a big, big summer… I don't really want to say exactly. But I think we need something we can put together that is going to be there over the next couple of years. Now it's time to start competing for a championship, not just competing for the playoffs. Those days for me are over with… It's not going to happen overnight. But the ball is not in my court at this point. It comes to what [the front office] wants to do in the offseason. It's up to them to make those decisions and at that time I will figure it out."
In other words, Anthony wants Jackson to go all in this offseason and try to bring in another star to help win a title. If Williams and Afflalo don't opt out the Knicks won't have the money to afford one. If they do, the only true stars out there that could make that them a title contender are Kevin Durant and LeBron James. Neither is walking through the door. Anthony is, in effect, asking for the impossible and he acknowledges as much in his own quote. The Knicks will be lucky to make the playoffs next year, let alone actually winning a series or two.
Melo's final line "…at that time I will figure it out" is code for "at that point I'll decide if I want to opt out." There's a chance he'll decide this summer if the Knicks really whiff in free agency, but given Anthony's patience so far he would likely wait until near the All-Star Break. Timing will be important.
Then there was his talk with Jackson: "We had a great conversation [recently]. It was just one conversation. At this point, it's more show me rather than tell me. That's where I am at."
Anthony is telling Jackson to prove to him with actual moves that he can build a winner, and he'll stay. Fail, and it's adios!
He added one more thing about his no-trade clause: "I guess I have all the power. If I really wanted to get out of this situation I could have waived that no-trade clause. But I've stuck with it and I'm still sticking with it. I don't know, maybe my loyalty has come back to bite me in the ass. As of right now, I am sticking to it."
The four words right before the end of the sentence are the ones that really matter: "As of right now…." That leaves a huge opening for him to lift that no-trade clause if the Knicks' roster doesn't shape up to his expectations in the summer. At this point, it's hard to see that happening.
The truth is Anthony should have seen this coming. When he re-signed with the Knicks, anyone taking a realistic look at the franchise would have said they were in line for a long-term rebuild before they could compete again. If Anthony didn't realize it, his agent or one of his advisors should have told him. But you can't go back and fix the past. There is only the future.
The truth is the Knicks would be best off moving Anthony during the free agency period, not afterwards. When teams have a lot of cap space available (and many will this offseason) working out a salary swap to move Anthony is much easier. Once the season starts and teams are up against the cap, taking players back to match salary exactly makes trades far more difficult to execute.
If the Knicks have the sense at the start of free agency that they won't be able to land a big fish to help Anthony, they need to be honest and tell him and he needs to agree to lift his no-trade clause. It would be easier for the Knicks to get him somewhere he wants to go, and to get back value for their star. Having his permission to move him on draft night wouldn't be a bad thing, either.
Unless Jackson pulls off a miracle, this separation seems inevitable. It's coming and likely only a question of when. If that ends up being the case, both sides should accept it sooner rather than later, so moving him to the right place for the right package becomes easier.
It would be better for him and the team. Trading Anthony would lead to a long slog to get back to being a good team with no guarantees, but if that's their destiny, it would be better to get it started sooner rather than later.
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