New York Knicks Likely To Reunite With Carmelo Anthony In Free Agency

The road to a massive revamp under new president Leon Rose could take a significant twist for the Knicks with a familiar name being speculated to make a return in New York.

Carmelo Anthony, an ex-Knicks franchise cornerstone, could reunite with his former ball club in the offseason as Rose, who happens to be his former agent, is said to be determined in signing him in the upcoming free agency, Marc Berman of the New York Post reports.

“According to sources, Anthony has been on Rose’s radar ever since he took over the presidency in early March. Rose is Anthony’s former top client at Creative Artists Agency,” Bernan wrote. “Other connections include Anthony lobbying for (Tom) Thibodeau to become Knicks coach in 2014 and the newly hired assistant Woodson getting Anthony to play his best two-way ball in the 2012-13 season.

“It also makes sense because the Knicks have no clear starting small forward. The Knicks also need an outside-shooting forward after Julius Randle regressed from deep last season.”

Anthony, 36, has had a career-rejuvenation in his stint with the Portland Trail Blazers, who are coming off an impressive showcase in the Orlando bubble. Despite being a mid-season pickup in 2019, the 10-time All-Star instantly found his footing with the Blazers as he proved to be a perfect fit for the team, especially while playing alongside spitfire backcourt Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum.

The bond that Anthony built with the Blazers has become personal for the veteran, and if it were for him, he would love to stay in Portland.

"I pray that it could be Portland," Anthony told The Athletic. "Honestly, thank God I found a home in Portland. I got comfortable with the organization. I got comfortable with the guys on the team. They got comfortable with me ... At this point in my career, I do think that that's the best fit for me, the best situation. Especially having this experience now and kind of just getting my feet wet, coming in, and being who I am and staying true to myself. I really hope that it can be Portland at the end of the day where we give ourselves a chance to keep this team together, get guys healthy, and get another run at it.

"Whenever you find a situation that is comfortable and allows you to be who you are, you want to stay in that situation," Anthony added. "There is no need to try different things when something is working."

Anthony played some of his best basketball in his seven-year run with the Knicks from 2010 to 2017. In over 400 games, he averaged 24.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 3.2 assists.

In his 17^th season in the league, the three-time Olympic Gold Medallist played 58 games with the Blazers and racked up 15.4 points, 6.3 boards, and 1.5 assists per night while shooting 43% from the field and 38.5% from deep.