Houston Rockets Discussed Carmelo Anthony Trade With New York Knicks
With Paul George no longer an option, the Houston Rockets will now have to look elsewhere for a third superstar to team up with most valuable player runner-up James Harden and perennial All-Star Chris Paul.
According to ESPN, the Rockets have reached out and discussed a potential trade involving Carmelo Anthony, but the talks didn't really get far.
"The Knicks and Houston Rockets touched base recently on a trade involving Anthony, per league sources, but talks didn't gain much traction. One name that came up in discussions was Ryan Anderson, per sources. But the Knicks said at that time they weren't interested in Anderson, who has been shopped around by the Rockets," ESPN's Ian Begley wrote in his report.
Begley also noted that the Knicks are not looking to move Anthony until they find a new team president to fill the void left behind by Phil Jackson.
It will be interesting to see if the Rockets will go hard after Anthony once the Knicks are ready to discuss deals involving him. After all, the All-Star forward practically ran head coach Mike D'Antoni out of New York a few years back. Well, the Rockets could use a proven scorer like Anthony, and ESPN's Brian Windhorst said that wouldn't prevent the forward from joining the Rockets.
In any case, Houston could be an attractive landing spot for Anthony if he gets traded because he would be joining his good friend Chris Paul.
The caveat is that Anthony has a no-trade clause and he doesn't seem interested in leaving New York right now because he wants to remain close to his son, Kiyan.
In other news, ESPN has reported that Nene Hilario has agreed to sign a three-year, $11 million deal to remain with the Rockets. Nene originally agreed to a four-year contract, but they have to rework it since it was in violation of the league's new Over-38 rule.
P.J. Tucker also agreed to sign a four-year $32 million deal with Houston.