Is Melo headed to the Rockets, Another Team or Staying in New York?

This weekend is supposed to be THE weekend, the NBA finally sees if Carmelo Anthony will be playing with the New York Knicks next year, the Houston Rockets, or someone else. Why is this so exciting? For one, discussions of Melo breaking his no trade clause to leave the Knicks has been happening for years. Therefore, the excitement is the fact that, the Knicks and Anthony may finally be able to put this to rest, make a deal, and move on.

La La Anthony, Carmelo’s wife, was quoted earlier this week saying they expected this to all be settled weeks ago. Some may have thought this would be settled months ago. Phil Jackson is gone and no longer the President of the organization and even though he and Melo butt heads a lot, it seems despite Phil “mutually parting ways” with the Knicks, that may not have been enough to keep Carmelo.

Carmelo Anythony’s people have been actively trying to work a deal to get the 10-time all-star to join fellow all-star players, James Harden and Chris Paul in Houston. It seems as though the Knicks and the Rockets organizations have not been able to work together to find a lucrative enough deal for all parties involved. On one side, the Knicks organization has reported on Friday that they expect Melo to be in training camp next week. They were not able to find a deal good enough to benefit both Anthony and the Knicks organization and as they have always said, if it does not benefit both parties, they will not agree to it. So next week, fans can expect to see #7 in a New York uniform back in the Empire State working out with his team. Makes sense, right?

Except for the fact that, on the same day the Knicks said they cannot make the Houston deal work, Carmelo’s people have announced they are expanding the list of desired teams. It seems as though they are not settling for no. The list of teams now once again includes the defending Eastern Conference Champions, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and a third team, along with the Rockets. This is not the first time Melo has expressed interested in joining Lebron and former teammate Derrick Rose in Cleveland. This is also not the first time a third team has been discussed. However, it has not been released who the third team is just yet. Tweets and possible reports show Melo’s interest in Portland after conversations and open recruiting from CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard, but it is not known for sure. Carmelo has reported that it is a “possibility” the Trailblazers will be added to that list. Late Friday night it was reported that Carmelo did add the Oklahoma City Thunder to the list of teams he would waive his no trade clause for if the price is right. It seems as though Melo knows exactly what he wants and that is to join a team with a couple of veteran all-stars on it since the list includes players like Lebron and K.Love in Cleveland, MVP Russell Westbrook and Paul George in OKC, or maybe even Dame and CJ in Portland.

For new general manager Scott Perry, regardless where Melo wants to go, the Knicks would need a deal that makes sense for them. With Melo arguably on the downward slope of his career, that makes the deal even harder. For Anthony, it seems as though he has mentally already moved. He and his family are now just waiting for something to be made official. One thing is for certain, this issue of trying to trade Carmelo Anthony started when Phil Jackson was president and is still going on now with Scott Perry in charge. It was an issue during Kristap Porzingis rookie season and now two years later, it seems like the Knicks are rebuilding around Melo. However, most news around the Knicks, especially Carmelo Anthony, involves questions of trades. Hopefully this weekend, a decision will finally be made to definitely move or stay Melo, so that everyone can move on. It is safe to say, if this decision is not a move, this will not be the last discussion about Carmelo Anthony wanting to leave New York.