The Carmelo Anthony free agent rumors are starting to heat up as the deadline for him opting out gets closer and reports have the Houston Rockets and Chicago Bulls as favorites along with the NY Knicks in free agency and the Miami Heat also could be players for Melo and this comes as Phil Jackson and contingent of New York honchos in coach Derek Fisher and GM Steve Mills flew to LA to meet with him.
According to ESPN.com, Anthony is considering leaving the Knicks and will weigh all his options as a free agent when he opts out of his deal. The Knicks will have a head start on teams to sign him and on top of that, both the Bulls and Rockets would need to make moves for that to happen. The Rockets need to move Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin to clear cap space, while the Bulls will have to move Carlos Boozer to free up enough room.
Anthony is coming into the offseason after a rough year with the Knicks and while New York feels they are in good position to retain him, Melo could realistically leave for a number of teams. Anthony missed the playoffs for the first time in his career and the Knicks won just 37 games after starting off 3-13 and Anthony is the major piece for the Knicks this offseason and Phil Jackson is hoping to sign him back. Anthony has the right to become a free agent and he has never had the chance to be one before and even if he signs back with the Knicks, he deserved the chance to hit the market.
Anthony has the chance to sign the longest deal and the contract with the most money with the Knicks and one report has him potentially leaving $70 million on the table if he wants to try and sign with the Miami Heat. The ESPN.com report from last week said that Miami has had internal discussions about bringing Anthony in to form a big four and that would include LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh playing together. Anthony signing with the Heat would require quite a bit to happen since all three players would need to opt out and re-sign, likely at less money and Anthony would also have to leave a ton of money on the table.
Anthony averaged 27 points this season and he has averaged over 25 points in his career and he could be a perfect fit for the Chicago Bulls, who need scoring alongside Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah. LeBron James and the Heat could be motivated to sign Anthony if they lose the Finals to the Spurs and James has said that he would be interested in playing with his longtime friend. Anthony is a major target this summer and he will be the top free agent along with James if they both opt out.