New York Knicks legend Carmelo Anthony nearly came back to the franchise he endured the most success in before retiring. After playing one season in a reserve role with the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2021-22 season, the future Hall of Famer hit free agency once more and considered coming back to the Big Apple.
Carmelo Anthony had concerns about what his role on the Knicks would look like in 2022
However, a deal was never reached between the two sides, and Anthony officially retired during the 2023 playoffs. The Knicks legend explained on the podcast 7 PM in Brooklyn that the reason a deal couldn’t get reached was because of concerns regarding his role on the team.
“They had a spot on the roster,” Anthony said. “We sat down and had a real conversation. [The Knicks said] ‘Listen, here’s a spot. You could be on the team tomorrow, but this is the spot.’ I said ‘nah.’ The not knowing of when you are going to play and not play, I’d rather not go through that.”
Anthony’s career was on the decline by that point, as he had spent the greater part of his last two seasons playing in a bench role. However, he had shown that he still had some gas left in the tank as he averaged 13.3 points and shot 37.5% from three with the Lakers. The Knicks could have benefited from having an additional scorer off the bench who was also a seasoned veteran.
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The Knicks cashed in big that same summer with the signing of Jalen Brunson
The summer of 2022 was a big one for the Knicks, as they signed Jalen Brunson to a four-year deal and would quickly become the franchise’s centerpiece and was named the 36th captain of the organization this offseason. It is unclear what type of role Anthony would have played had he joined the Knicks that summer, but it could have served as a proper farewell tour for one of the game’s most gifted scorers of all time and a beloved franchise figure.
Anthony spent seven seasons with the Knicks from 2010-17, where he averaged 24.7 points and 7.0 rebounds and was named to the All-Star team each season in New York. He was also the league’s scoring champion in the 2012-13 season when he averaged 28.7 points, the same average as Brunson this past season. Further similar to last season, the Knicks were also the second seed in the Eastern Conference and won at least 50 games the year Anthony won the scoring title.
While the torch has officially been passed from Anthony leading the team to Brunson, there was almost a time when the two could have spent a season together and won a lot of games. Unfortunately, the two sides couldn’t work out a final reunion.
