Clippers Emerge As Possible Carmelo Suitor

Many around the Knicks doubt that Carmelo Anthony will re-sign with the team this summer, and they believe the Clippers are the team most likely to land last year’s scoring champion, according to HoopsWorld’s Steve Kyler. Those same sources suggest the Knicks may try to trade Anthony to the Clippers before the February 20th deadline, Kyler writes.

It’s unclear whether that sort of talk is coming from Knicks management, players, or others around the team. Kyler also suggests that the Knicks would be reluctant to make Anthony a max offer in the summer, which would erode the team’s built-in financial advantage for re-signing its own player.

Anthony has made it clear he intends to exercise the early termination option on his deal and test free agency this summer, but it’s not a given that he would do so if he’s traded this season, Kyler says. The Clippers or another team could attempt to see if Anthony is willing to waive his option before agreeing to any trade.

Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling recently posed the idea of a Clippers/Knicks swap centered on Anthony and Blake Griffin to league executives, and it would probably take a star-laden package for the Knicks to pull the trigger on any trade. Such a move also require plenty of salary going to New York, since Anthony is making nearly $21.4MM this year. That figure alone would make any swap difficult, and it doesn’t sound like the Knicks are actively talking to teams about trading him, so the idea seems far-fetched, at least for now.

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