Carmelo Anthony met Thursday with New York Knicks president of basketball operations Phil Jackson and new coach Derek Fisher, but the NBA's second-leading scorer still plans to opt out of his deal early next month.
ProBasketballTalk.com reported on Friday Jackson and Fisher "were unable to talk Anthony out of his plan" to formally file for free-agency on July 1. The website added Anthony's agent Leon Rose and Knicks GM Steve Mills were also on hand for the meeting and the team is now hoping Anthony will still elect to return to the Knicks, who can offer him as much as $30 million more than any other team as part of a max contract.
The Bulls, Mavs, Lakers and Rockets have all expressed different levels of interest in Anthony, who finished the year as the league's second-leading scorer behind MVP Kevin Durant. This week, rumors also surfaced that the Miami Heat could be interested in landing the All-Star forward and team president Pat Riley is now working on a plan where its star players LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh would take less money this summer as free agents to make way for Anthony.
Carmelo Anthony leaving Knicks?
The 30-year-old Anthony averaged 27 points, eight rebounds and three assists for the Knicks last season. During his 11-year NBA career, which included eight seasons in Denver, Anthony has averaged 25 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
With the Knicks struggling to a 37-45 season, Anthony insisted that the most important thing for him moving forward is having the chance to win a NBA title.
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