One of the more intriguing off-court stories in the NBA this season has been the New York Knicks’ strange and eventually successful wooing of former Bulls and Lakers head coach Phil Jackson–who has won titles with both Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant–out of retirement and into New York’s front office.
Finally, a few days ago, that Knicks’ pipe dream became a reality as Jackson signed a 5-year, $60 million deal to join the organization as its president. Now, in the wee sunrise of his 2nd New York stint, after playing for the Knicks in the 60’s and 70’s, Jackson has made it clear that his team’s best player, Carmelo Anthony, who has been rumored to want to leave New York for the greener pastures and more talented rosters of other cities’ team, isn’t going anywhere.
Phil Jackson, from ESPN.com: “I have no problems with committing to saying Carmelo is in the future plans.”
“I think there are a number of things I see Carmelo doing as he moves forward. And I think I was on record saying a year ago that I think Carmelo, as great a player as he is, still has another level he can go to. And I hope together, with the team we create, he can get there”
As the article mentions, Anthony can, and probably will, opt out of the final year of his contract this summer, thrusting himself into the open waters of free agency where most teams with enough cap room would do whatever is necessary to attract him to their situation.
The Knicks have not been good this year, as they sit at 27-40 currently, but Anthony is having another incredible scoring campaign, averaging 28 points a contest on 45 percent shooting. With those numbers, and his clear ability to put up insane amounts of points on a nightly basis, he is highly valued in New York and across the league as well, meaning he will get some great offers this summer, possibly from rumored destinations such as the Bulls and Lakers.
However, all of this contrary evidence still has not gotten Jackson, who has worked with superstars his whole post-playing NBA career, to publicly say that there is a chance his team loses Carmelo in a few months. He must know it somewhere deep down, but with the prestige and winning associated with Phil Jackson, maybe Anthony can be convinced to give the Knicks another shot to help him win his 1st NBA Championship.
