Is It Time For The Knicks To Ship Out Carmelo Anthony?

The New York Knicks have not been legitimate title contenders since the mid 90’s when Patrick Ewing patrolled the paint, punishing all who dared defend him. They did make the Finals in 1999, but that was a miraculous appearance. The Knicks had virtually no chance of defeating the Spurs as they won their first of five championships in fifteen years. They have managed to put together respectable seasons, even winning 54 games and the Atlantic Division as recently as the 2012-2013 season. Another team that, contrary to their fan base’s beliefs, had no real chance of advancing past the Lebron-lead Miami Heat, despite their head-to-head success in the regular season. It wouldn’t matter, the emerging Playoff threat Pacers removed the Knicks in the second round. That was the peak of the Carmelo years in New York. Anthony is a devastatingly powerful, offensive force and effective rebounder for his position, but his defensive shortcomings, paired with his woeful lack of leadership always leave fans clamoring for more. As a second option or a piece of a structured cohesive squad, Carmelo could be very, very useful. As the centerpiece of a franchise looking to regain relevance, his weakness become glaring. The Knicks have not undergone a total rebuild, even when it’s appeared time.

New York City is commonly regarded as the capitol of the world, America’s grandest metropolis and therefore, shouldn’t need to pump the brakes, let the car run to empty, before refueling and burning through quarter miles. A lot of things should happen. Isaiah Thomas shouldn’t have signed every offensive guard in the world, along with problem big men, but he did and it set the franchise back. New York now enters this free agency with a a plethora of cap space, something it hasn’t had in quite some time. This is a terrific free agent class and the popularity of the city gives them access to players that their front office and ownership assuredly, do not deserve.

Should the Knicks strike out in free agency and fail to partner Carmelo Anthony with premiere players ex: Aldridge, Love etc., it may be time to reevaluate the roster. The Knicks are reportedly the favorites to sign Greg Monroe and Aaron Afflalo. Very good players, but as long as Lebron looms, not good enough, even in the depleted Easter Conference. Also, of note, the Knicks are coming off of a very poor season, in which Carmelo sat out most of the year. What happens when you have a bad season? You’re team is in the lottery, where they will be selecting players that should be of great influence on the NBA for years to come.

Reportedly, Phil Jackson went out of his way to reassure his star player that the Knicks would be looking to draft someone capable of contributing immediately. That doesn’t sound like Kristaps Porzingis, the 19 year old Latvian big man who looks like his body needs a few more years to fully develop.

Typically big men take longer to mature in the NBA, which means we are looking at likely 3-4 years before Porzingis starts paying dividends for the Knicks. Carmelo can’t wait that long. The potentially volatile 31 year old, if not paired with equivalent talent, could net large returns on the trade market. Should the Knicks commit to a proper rebuild, perhaps another team that whiffs in free agency may look to acquire talent by other means. Typically trading within your division is frowned upon, but the 76ers and Celics both have a plethora of future picks and could both use an upgrade at the small forward.

Carmelo feels like a Knick, he should be there and it should work, but it isn’t. He’s one of the most unique players in the NBA, whom if not a part of the perfect formula, actually holds you back. As currently constituted, marketing aside and focusing purely on basketball balance, the Knicks are very, very far from a good fit.