The Houston Rockets are down in their playoffs series, but heading into next season GM Daryl Morey may try to trade Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin to clear cap space to sign Carmelo Anthony from the NY Knicks and that would give the team their own Big Three with Dwight Howard and James Harden in 2014 and that could lead to a championship season in Texas.
Anthony and LeBron James will be the biggest names on the free agent market this summer if they opt out of their deals and according to SI.com and Pro Basketball Talk, the Rockets and the Bulls are the favorites to sign him, as both have championship teams ready and he is considered the missing piece. Adding to the intrigue of all this is the possible raise of the salary cap, as ESPN.com is reporting that it could go up from $58.6 million to $63.2 million and the luxury tax threshold will be from $71.7 million to $77 million and that could give the teams the boost they need to compete with the Knicks for Melo. ESPN.com writes that trading Asik and Lin could clear enough space to sign him.
The Knicks are obviously going to do their best to keep Anthony in New York, but they will have some competition from teams like the Lakers, Houston Rockets and Chicago Bulls, with the latter two being looked at as the most likely to sway him if he does leave. Anthony has a major decision to make for his career and while he loves NY and likes to play in MSG, clearly the team is at least two years away from being at a championship level and that is tough for a player that is pushing past his 30th birthday. Anthony isn't quite there yet, but this will be his last big money deal and he has to decide what is most important.
Anthony has the right to opt out of his deal this summer no matter what happens and even if he returns to NY, he deserves to be able to sell his skills on the open market. Technically Anthony has never been a free agent in his life when it comes to the NBA, as he was drafted by the Nuggets, signed an extension to stay there and while yes, he did have some sway in getting the trade to the Knicks, it still wasn't free agency. Anthony signed another deal to stay there and once again he did not have the chance to be a free agent, so it's understandable that he wants to be wooed.
Phil Jackson has taken over as the head of basketball operations and while he wants to keep Anthony, he said that Melo may have to take a pay cut, much like what the Big 3 did in Miami. The Knicks can build around him if he does that and since they can offer him the most years and most money, even if he takes a discount they still should be able to outbid other teams. Anthony was frustrated missing the playoffs for the first time in his career and adding to that was the fact that the Knicks went from a division winner with over 50 wins last season to a terrible team in 2013-14 and that could make it tougher for the team to retain the star.
