Reports: Carmelo Anthony's decision will not come Friday, Lakers out

Carmelo Anthony's free agency decision is not expected to come Friday, reports Marc Spears of Yahoo. ESPN's Stephen A. Smith reports that Los Angeles Lakers are no longer in the running.

Now that LeBron James has announced his return to Cleveland, all eyes are on Carmelo Anthony, waiting to see when and where he will go. ESPN's Stephen A. Smith reports that the Los Angeles Lakers are no longer in contention to land Anthony, while Yahoo's Marc Spears is reporting that Anthony's decision is not coming Friday. 

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If Anthony has ruled out the Lakers, that would mean he is deciding between the New York Knicks and Chicago Bulls.

Reports Wednesday were conflicted as to whether Anthony had reached a decision. Frank Isola of the New York Daily News said that Anthony was expected to return to the Knicks, while Bleacher Report's Howard Beck and ESPN.com's Ramona Shelburne both reported that Anthony was still undecided at that point. 

Anthony has played in New York since being traded from the Denver Nuggets midway through the 2010-11 season. The Knicks made the playoffs in Anthony's first three seasons with the team but failed to qualify last season, when they finished ninth in the Eastern Conference. 

- Dan Gartland