New York Knicks Halt Trade Talks for Carmelo Anthony Amid Rumored Transfer to Houston
The New York Knicks has reportedly suspended ongoing negotiations to trade off Carmelo Anthony amid recent rumors that the player could soon be transferred to the Houston Rockets.
League sources claim the New York front office is suddenly showing interest in keeping Anthony with the team, according to ESPN.
Earlier in the recent week, reports were rife that the Knicks and Rockets were close to finalizing a deal that would include a third team in the negotiating table but would ultimately send Anthony to the Rockets. Anthony was also purportedly geared to finally renounce the no-trade clause in his contract to make the agreement happen.
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However, some factors might have affected the Knicks' previous prospects. Just recently, Phil Jackson left his post as Knicks president of basketball operations for the franchise. Jackson, according to earlier reports, had been actively shopping for deals that could be enticing enough for Anthony to drop his no-trade rights.
The Knicks are also in for an imminent change as they are about to welcome Scott Perry as new general manager. These changes, ESPN added, could be the possible reasons why Knicks executive president Steve Mills is reconsidering their previous plans for Anthony.
However, the same report suggested that it is highly unlikely for Anthony to still want to play for the Knicks after all those months that the team management was obviously working out all possible means to trade him off.
More recent reports suggest that Anthony — who is rumored to be meeting with Perry and Mills "in the coming days" — is still hoping that the Knicks will push through on the suspended talks with Houston.
Considering how rocky his relationship had been with the Knicks management in the previous month plus the chance of playing alongside Chris Paul and James Harden, Anthony's eagerness to leave the Knicks for the Rockets is understandable.
