New York Knicks All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony won’t be taking part in the NBA Playoffs for the first time in his 11-year career. With free agency looming, Anthony admits that he’s in a futile search for answers and solutions to his predicament. Per Newsday:
“Everything for me is just cloudy,” Anthony said a day after the Knicks officially were eliminated from playoff contention. “I’ve never been in the situation before. I don’t know what to say about this situation. The only thing for me is to stay positive throughout this situation.
“There’s going to be a lot of questions that I have, that I’m going to be asking myself: Why this? Why that? I’m pretty sure I won’t find no answers anytime soon. We’ll see what happens.”
Anthony has said he will opt out of his contract and become a free agent in July. Although Phil Jackson is calling the shots now and the Knicks can pay Anthony about $34 million more than any other team can, there are no guarantees he will stay.
He stressed that what happened this season will have nothing to do with his plan to opt out. “Even if we had the greatest of a season, I probably would still be in that situation,” he said. But this season and its lingering effects could impact what he does in free agency.
Anthony has said the only thing that drives him is the opportunity to win a title. Despite Amar’e Stoudemire’s statement that “on paper, we might be the best team in the league,” the Knicks, as constituted, aren’t a title contender. They are 35-45 heading into Tuesday night’s next-to-last game against the playoff-bound Nets.
The Knicks are expected to have a new coach, but many of the same players could be back if Jackson sticks with the plan of maintaining as much salary-cap room as possible for the summer of 2015.Anthony continues to say Jackson’s arrival was a great move, and he looks forward to speaking to him about the future.
“That was a big play,” Anthony said. “That was definitely a big play for our organization, for the Knicks, for me. When that time comes, I’m pretty sure everything will be laid out, we would talk about it. Until then, I’m going to feel this way.”
