NBA Rumors: Knicks Passed Up Potential Carmelo Anthony, DeMarcus Cousins Tandem In 2015

KEY POINTS

Knicks could have traded rights to third overall pick to the Kings for Cousins
Anthony-Cousins combo could have worked for New York
Knicks would have dealt with an injury-prone Cousins if the deal was made

Most are aware of the New York Knicks run during the Phil Jackson era. It was one of the worst regular-season records for the franchise although they did not fall short of talent. A notable NBA star at the time was Carmelo Anthony, joining the Knicks in February 2011.

From there, all the Knicks had to do was provide the ten-time NBA All-Star needed help. One of those came in 2015 when New York took in Kristaps Porzingis with the third overall selection of the 2015 NBA Draft. Now, there is the word that the Knicks could have ended up with a legit All-Star instead in the person of DeMarcus Cousins. According to SNY.tv, New York considered trading that pick for Boogie who was then with the Sacramento Kings.

Regardless, the Knicks got a promising young player in Porzingis. But then again, one has to wonder if Gotham-based squad would have performed better doing Jackson's patented Triangle Offense. With the need of a big man to make it all work, things would have worked out better with an Anthony-Cousins tandem.

Things just did not work out for the Knicks and everything fell apart. Anthony was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder while Jackson was relieved in 2017. Cousins ended up joining the New Orleans Pelicans, forming a deadly twin tower combo with Anthony Davis.

On whether Cousins could have helped out or not remains up for debate. Most know how the temperamental big man suffered injuries one after the other. He failed to finish the season with the Pelicans and has struggled to be healthy up to now. Had he joined the Knicks, New York would have been dealing with his injury woes, possibly failing to reap any benefit.

All the individuals mentioned are no longer in Gotham and have moved on. The Knicks remain in search of their new path, hoping to end its NBA playoff drought. The last time they made it was during the 2012-13 season when they went as far as the Eastern Conference semifinals. Since then they have failed to end a season above .500.

As of this writing, the Knicks have yet to figure that out. Several players may be dealt off like Dennis Smith Jr. As mentioned in a previous post, it may be best for Smith to play elsewhere to rediscover his old form. With a seemingly set rotation, Smith has hardly made an impact this season. In 21 games, he has averaged only 5.2 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists, a far cry from his career-high production.