With the New York Knicks’ 2015-16 regular season winding down, Carmelo Anthony has been given many opportunities to distance himself from the organization’s rebuilding process—to provide a shadow of a doubt that he wishes to remain in the Big Apple.
He hasn’t seized any of those opportunities.
And that didn’t change following the Knicks’ loss to the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night, per ESPN.com’s Ian Begley:
About 90 minutes after the New York Knicks’ 93-89 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Sunday, someone asked Carmelo Anthony if he thought he may have played his final home game at Madison Square Garden.
“No, no, I don’t think about that. Not right now,” he said. “I can’t think about that. My mindset is just figuring out how we’re going to better this situation, how we’re going to continue to grow as a team, grow as an organization and not get used to going home this early in April.”
Begley reiterated that there are those who believe Melo will waive his no-trade clause, and Anthony himself emphasized the importance of the Knicks returning to playoff contention, as their current stasis isn’t one to which he sees himself becoming accustom.
What remains of Anthony’s loyalty to New York is probably also tethered to free agency. If team president Phil Jackson visibly upgrades the roster, chasing players and head coaching candidates that make the Knicks markedly better, Anthony will have enough justification arrows in his quiver to stay put without thinking twice.
But if the Knicks, say, re-sign Kurt Rambis, make minimal changes and don’t appear headed in the direction of imminent postseason contention, things get interesting. Anthony will turn 32 in May and cannot afford to be messing around with a rebuild that’s short on progress.
For his no-trade clause to become a true non-issue, the Knicks must give him reasons to stay, rather than banking on his allegiance to the city and uniform keeping him in New York.
