Carmelo Anthony buyout may be possible with new Knicks president
If the Cleveland Cavaliers acquire Carmelo Anthony, his buyout with the New York Knicks will likely be reached late in the offseason.
The dream of the Cleveland Cavaliers acquiring Carmelo Anthony after a buyout is still alive.
Though I speculated that the New York Knicks wouldn’t look to buy Anthony out of his contract, with former president of basketball operations Phil Jackson on the outs in the Big Apple, in retrospect I misinterpreted the situation. My rationale for an Anthony buyout being unlikely was this tweet from ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, which I interpreted as owner James Dolan picking Anthony over Jackson.
Conversations between Jackson and Knicks owner James Dolan accelerated this week when the Knicks decided they would NOT buy out Carmelo
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) June 28, 2017
However, upon further inspection, Jackson was part of the organization when the Knicks were showing a reluctance to buy Anthony out of his contract as it would allow him to join the Cleveland Cavaliers. With that noted, it would seem that the Knicks ownership is indeed interested in buying out Anthony.
It makes a lot more sense with his wife, LaLa, touring around the country voicing her opinion on the next team he’ll play for and his desire to stay close to his son.
According to Basketball Insiders’ Steve Kyler, the Knicks aren’t focused on trading Anthony (as they likely look to rebuild) and they won’t truly consider a buyout until they have a new president of basketball operations in place.
Knicks won't consider a buyout until a new President in place. Trade still possible but not a focus for the Knicks https://t.co/u6gLrzt5og
— Steve Kyler (@stevekylerNBA) July 2, 2017
According to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, the Knicks interviewed Cavs former general manager David Griffin for the position over the phone. He’s expected to have a face-to-face meeting in a few weeks.
Also this weekend, Knicks had initial phone interview w/ former Cavs GM David Griffin. He's expected to interview in person w/in a few weeks
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) July 2, 2017
That would be sometime before training camp and so that would look like the timeline to expect the Knicks to engage in buyout talks with Anthony. For the record, Griffin doesn’t seem to be a fan of Anthony. According to basketball insider Sam Amico, Griffin had “no interest whatsoever” in trading for Anthony when he was the leading front office executive for the Cavs.
Not the reason #Cavs parted ways, but am told David Griffin had no interest whatsoever in trading for Carmelo Anthony.
— Sam Amico (@AmicoHoops) June 20, 2017
That’s not likely to endear Anthony to Griffin, and with Anthony already becoming disenchanted with the New York Knicks, the writing is on the wall for Anthony’s future with the franchise. Whether through trade or buyout, expect Anthony to be on a different team before the start of the 2017-2018 season.
Acquiring Anthony without trading a major piece for him is ideal for the Cavs who need more talent at the top of the roster to defeat the Golden State Warriors. While Anthony may be a statistically superior player to Kevin Love, having both players would give the Cavs two All-Star caliber forwards beside LeBron James and Kyrie Irving.