The Knicks Trading Carmelo Anthony? Let’s Get That Idea Out Of Our Heads

Carmelo Anthony (Nathaniel S. Butler/Getty Images)

All has been quiet on the eastern front from the New York Knicks for what seemed like months. After the team’s good showing during the Las Vegas Summer League, it seemed that everyone was on the same page and ready for the beginning of training camp set to begin later this month. Kristaps Porzingis looked like he could be a diamond in the rough and Carmelo Anthony finally looked like he was on-board with the moves that Knicks president Phil Jackson made during the off-season. The New York Knicks were getting ready for the season…until recently.

In a Grantland article discussing disgruntled Phoenix Suns forward Markieff Morris, Zach Lowe mentioned that New York may be a likely destination for Morris.

“The Kings and Knicks should take a look, even though neither has movable assets that would interest Phoenix — unless the Knicks are ready to engage in Carmelo Anthony trade talks. (They’re not there, yet. But they’re getting closer.)”

Now the major flaw in the Grantland story is the fact that any team in the NBA wants Markieff Morris. A player who is whining about his twin brother Marcus being traded away from Phoenix after they were both charged with assault together in the spring. That is a player that you do not want on your team and if you do, you are either desperate or just clueless. That’s the first red flag from the story already.

The second part of the story that doesn’t jive right is the fact that it seemed that everyone was on board with each other. Jackson said just a few weeks ago that Anthony was “very into the triangle offense” in a story from ESPN. Jackson even sees Anthony as a Jordan-like scorer within the offense, something that many Knick fans would be in favor of. That would make the idea of the Knicks trading Anthony completely out of the question and out of left field considering that the whole offense is hinging on Carmelo being the focus of the offense.

In addition, Anthony really seems to be on board with the Knicks after taking some of his teammates to Puerto Rico for a bonding trip earlier this month. Rookies Porzingis and Jerian Grant, free agent signing Kyle O’Quinn, and last season’s breakout player Langston Galloway joined Carmelo on the island. They participated in a charity softball game and began working out together. Anthony has also been busy attempting to recruit players to come to New York next summer with many signs pointing to Kevin Durant being pursued by Anthony many times in the last few weeks according to Stephen A. Smith of ESPN.

Let’s just say that the Knicks would be willing to trade Carmelo Anthony. What would you get for him coming off of knee surgery? Is Markieff Morris really the centerpiece of a deal for, when healthy, one of the NBA’s best scorers? You would almost have to wait until a couple of months into the season to see if Anthony regains his form and then begin to entertain trade offers. The problem becomes that Jackson and Anthony staked their legacies to each other last summer when Anthony resigned with the Knicks and I’m pretty sure neither man would want to admit that the experiment failed.

The New York Knicks are not trading Carmelo Anthony anytime soon, if ever. Last season was, for lack of a better term, a disaster and everyone within the organization knows it. The worse thing the team can do is just scrap it and restart everything again. Next summer, with a little more cap space, the Knicks may actually be able to sign some big names if they show that they have a star to build around in Anthony. Will they win a championship this year? No. Can they make the playoffs in the weak Eastern Conference? No doubt and the playoffs are needed to convince guys to come to New York. They will not get there without Carmelo Anthony.