New York Knicks Rumors: Marc Gasol Free Agent Target Over Carmelo Anthony Trade With Jahlil Okafor Draft Option?

The NY Knicks are headed towards the draft lottery this year and with reports of a potential Carmelo Anthony trade possible, the team is looking to next year, as free agents LaMarcus Aldridge, Rajon Rondo, Greg Monroe and Marc Gasol will be on the market, while names like Jahlil Okafor and Emmanuel Mudiay could be targets in the NBA draft come 2015.

The Knicks are in a very tough spot, as Phil Jackson is signed to a five year contract and is looking to build a winner, but things have not gotten off to a good start. The team was not expected to contend for a championship right away, but this has been a disaster so far in 2014, with the Knicks winning just a handful of their first 24 games, going 4-24 heading into Friday night. Now reports have come out from the New York Post that Anthony would be willing to waive his no-trade clause if the Knicks looked at trading him.

While Anthony has come out to say those rumors are false, it wouldn't be a major surprise to see the two sides at least consider making this move. The report comes as there was some public discord on the team with Anthony and some other players, with ESPN.com reporting that Melo and Tim Hardaway Jr. nearly came to blows last week after a game. Chris Broussard at ESPN reported on the incident, saying that Hardaway went at Anthony for playing selfish basketball and not enough defense, while Melo reacted by threatening to fight the young player, although the physical altercation never ended up happening.

Derek Fisher admitted last week that there is some frustration on the team, but he downplayed the issues brought up by Broussard, saying that players can get "intense" in the heat of battle. While Anthony has denied the reports about the no-trade clause, things like this will continue to come up if the team struggles. The Knicks may look at trades this year apart from Anthony, including Amar'e Stoudemire and Iman Shumpert, as Shumpert is heading into restricted free agency and Amar'e is on an expiring deal.

The Knicks have been terrible this season overall and things have not been consistent on either end of the court, with the defense going through numerous lapses and the offense struggling in the triangle. Some players have criticized the new system and how effective it has been and the Knicks now may have to push that aside at least for a little bit as they try and turn things around. Adding to all this is the fact that Anthony is dealing with a knee injury and that could complicate things if he ends up getting surgery.

The Knicks come in after a loss to the Spurs and now they play against the Celtics and Raptors as they try and get a win in December. The team is ranked 15th in the league in points allowed per game and they are 27th in scoring, which is one of the main reasons for all the losing. The team has been inconsistent up front and they ranked 29th in the league in rebounds per game.