Carmelo Anthony was frustrated with the way the New York Knicks’ season went and called the 37-45 record that resulted in the team missing the playoffs a “failure.” He has the opportunity to become a free agent this summer and wants to return to the Knicks, but he also wants to win.
Before committing to the Knicks longterm, ‘Melo is challenging new team president Phil Jackson to acquire another superstar.
‘Melo has a $23.7 million option next season but is expected to opt out in order to sign his last big free agent contract. The Knicks can pay him $129 million over five years, which is more than any other team can pay him.
“I’m not at a point in my career where I want to rebuild,” Anthony said at the team facility Thursday.
He said he is willing to sacrifice money to bring in talented players because he is so hungry to win his first championship.
ESPN New York’s Ian O’Connor says ‘Melo specifically wants another superstar on the team, and he says it’s on Jackson to bring in Kevin Durant or LeBron James by 2016. I think that’s an absolutely ridiculous notion and something that will never happen, so that premise is just silly. Their more likely options will come in 2015 when LaMarcus Aldridge, Kevin Love and Rajon Rondo are on the market. By then, it remains to be seen how much of a star the soon-to-be 30-year-old ‘Melo will be anyway.
