According to Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports, New York Knicks forward Amar’e Stoudemire “plans to use the All-Star break to decide whether to ask the New York Knicks for a contract buyout that could free him to potentially sign with a playoff contender.”
Stoudemire is in the last year of his five-year, $100 million contract he signed when things, and the outlook, of the franchise looked far different than the gloomy, ambiguous state it’s in today.
Amar’e also had this to say in the piece:
“All possibilities at this point are still open,” Stoudemire said of a possible buyout. “The door is still open for that. But at the same time, I am with the Knicks now. I got to stay optimistic about things and what we are doing here. I can’t really focus on the future because it’s not here.
“We still have a couple weeks left before it’s all said and done. It’s a decision I have to make with my family to figure out the best scenario for the near future.”
Amar’e took a leap of faith leaving Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns for the New York Knicks almost five years ago and things haven’t worked out, to say the least, for the former six-time All-Star.
Still, Amar’e has enough left in the tank to give a contender quality minutes off the bench in the right situation. Western Conference contenders like the Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Clippers and Oklahoma City Thunder could all use the services of Stoudemire.
Even teams not in contention for the title could be nice fits for Amar’e like the Milwaukee Bucks – who need all the big man help they can get – the Miami Heat, or the New Orleans Pelicans.
Amar’e has appeared in 32 games for the Knicks this season, averaging 24.9 mpg, 12.2 ppg and 7.0 rpg.
