As the New York Knicks’ franchise cornerstone, Carmelo Anthony has an ostensibly simple and innocent request: please run the next coaching hire by him.
That means you, Phil.
From ESPN.com’s Ian Begley:
Carmelo Anthony would like to have some input on the Knicks’ upcoming personnel decisions, including the club’s next head-coaching hire.
“I think you have to,” he said Wednesday night. “I think you have to have some type of input, whether it’s input or dialogue, whatever word that you want to use. I think you have to have that. I think at this point it needs to be some type of connection, some type of communication. Especially if we want to right this ship, there definitely needs to be some type of communication.”
There is nothing particularly unreasonable about this request. Superstars want a say in the direction of the organization—especially when said superstars are pushing 32 years old, headlining a rebuild that, if all goes according to plan, won’t reach its zenith until they’re well past their prime.
It’s not like Anthony is asking for LeBron James-level power, either. He just wants to be included, involved, informed.
But it’s not immediately clear if the Knicks are willing to keep him in the loop, let alone make him a part of the decision-making process. Phil Jackson didn’t parade Melo around in free-agent meetings last year—a mistake, mind you–and all signs point to New York keeping Kurt Rambis as the head coach, despite Melo’s obvious interest in casting a wide net during the search.
All of which should make for an interesting summer in New York. If the Knicks aren’t going to account for Melo as they pick their next head coach, they sure as hell better make him a part of the free-agency process, more so than he was last year, lest his loyalty start to (justifiably) waver.
