Carmelo Anthony was a free agent just last summer, and he decided to re-sign with the New York Knicks on a five-year contract worth $124 million. Just one year later, it appears both sides might be having second thoughts about that contract after the Knicks won just 17 games a season ago. Anthony is now involved in a lot of trade rumors as the Knicks look to rebuild, and although they aren't there yet, they reportedly are getting closer to engaging in trade talks involving their superstar, according to Zach Lowe of Grantland.
This report oddly enough came from a piece written about the Markieff Morris saga, but it definitely raised some eyebrows as Anthony is just entering year two of his huge contract. Lowe brought it up when saying that the Knicks should look to trade for Morris but also realized that they wouldn't be able to unless Anthony became available.
The Knicks will likely wait out this season and next summer before they even consider trading Anthony as they are hoping to become respectable on the floor and get some free agents to New York in the summer of 2016. If the Knicks strike out once again in free agency next summer, then it might be time to look at their options and go into full rebuild mode.
Even if the Knicks do get to the point where they are willing to trade Carmelo, it will likely be a lot tougher than people think. Even after this season, Melo will have three years left on his contract at more than $24 million per year. Anthony is still just 31 years old, but he might be entering the downswing of his career, and he has a ton of money left on his contract - not to mention a no-trade clause.
The no-trade clause may not be too much of an issue, as Anthony could very well decide that the Knicks don't give him the best chance for a championship and his window to win is closing, but it is a matter of what teams would be willing to take on his contract. Anthony is one of the best scorers in the NBA, but he also isn't known as a winning player, so it will definitely be interesting to see how much interest he garners if he does go on the trading block.
In the end, the likelihood is that Anthony plays out the rest of his contract with the Knicks, taking in his huge checks and not winning much. The Knicks seem to be more open to trading him, and they should be, but the fact is that there are a lot of obstacles that would prevent them from doing so.
