Carmelo Anthony says Knicks still might trade him in off-season
New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony acknowledged that the team still might trade him during the off–season after failing to deal him during the regular season.
Anthony played in the team's season finale against the Philadelphia 76ers after missing the previous two games with a sore knee. He scored 17 points in the 114–113 win and did not play in the fourth quarter.
"They might," Anthony said when asked about the possibility of a trade this summer. "There was a point in time when I didn't think I would be back here."
Anthony's future with the team has been a source of speculation for the majority of the season. His name was brought up in trade rumors after rumors surfaced about the Knicks and team president Phil Jackson attempted to trade the nine-time All-Star to Cleveland for All-Star forward Kevin Love.
Jackson will be with the team for the foreseeable future as ESPN.com reported Thursday that the team picked the option on the remaining two years of Jackson's contract.
But Anthony said he didn't know if Wednesday's game would be the last time would appear in a Knicks uniform.
"I have to figure it out at that point," said Anthony. "It would have to be a decision I really sit down and think about and figure it out. I'm going to have to do a lot of figuring things out right now—sit down with my team, sit down with my family, really figure this out, kind of really put what's important to me at this point in my career, which is winning."
Anthony, 32, is due to make $26.24 million and $27.9 million in each of the next two seasons as part of the five-year, $124 million contract he signed in 2014.
Anthony averaged 22.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 74 games this season. New York has missed the postseason in each of the past four seasons.
- Scooby Axson