“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."
These were Phil Jackson’s words on the day he took over as New York Knicks president. Jackson described Carmelo Anthony that day as one of the top scorers in the NBA. He seemed genuinely excited about building a team around Anthony.
But so much has changed since that cold morning in New York nearly four years ago. There has been posturing by both sides and slights by Jackson, both perceived and real, that have damaged the relationship.
It has been a long time since anyone around the team would describe Jackson and Anthony as friendly.
That's why what happened Tuesday felt like the beginning of the end for the Jackson-Anthony relationship, which is a shame.
On the surface, it seemed simple: Anthony is frustrated over Jackson’s friend Charley Rosen writing that Anthony had "outworn his usefulness in New York." He requests to speak to Jackson about it. They meet on Tuesday. Jackson asks Anthony if he wants to remain a Knick, Anthony tells him he does.
But why would Jackson even ask Anthony that question? Anthony has said repeatedly in recent days he wants to be in New York. It seems fairly obvious that by asking the question, Jackson was really asking Anthony if he wanted to waive his no-trade clause.
All of this seems to put Anthony in an impossible spot -- which is unfortunate. Tuesday’s developments will give more ammunition to Knicks fans who sees Anthony as an impediment to the team’s progress. Those fans will have more reason to grumble and boo Anthony when he misses shots at Madison Square Garden. Has Anthony played a role in the Knicks’ disappointing season thus far? Of course.
He ranks 74th out of 80 small forwards in defensive real plus-minus, which measures a player's impact on team defense. New York also is seven points better defensively when Anthony’s off the court, compared to when he’s on it, per NBA.com.
Still, he deserves better treatment than he has received. He has been the public face of the Knicks for nearly six years and has represented the organization with class. His loyalty, as he said Monday, shouldn’t be questioned. He hasn’t gotten in trouble off the court and has handled all of the drama surrounding his tenure in New York with great composure.
Sure, some in the organization believe the best course of action for Anthony and the Knicks is to part ways, per sources. But if you asked enough people around the Knicks and caught them in an honest moment, some would probably say the same thing about Jackson. And it’s worth noting that the Knicks’ options in any Anthony trade are limited; there aren’t an abundance of teams that are close to winning and can obtain Anthony without gutting their roster. Perhaps potential trade partners in a Melo swap became even more limited when it was announced that Clippers guard Chris Paul would be lost for six to eight weeks with a thumb injury.
Of course, this situation doesn’t have to end in a trade this season -- or even this summer. Maybe New York can figure out a way to turn its season around with Anthony changing his defensive habits. Then all parties can put on a happy face and move forward, together.
But the better bet is that Tuesday marked the first scene in the final act of this play. That's regrettable, really. The Jackson-Anthony dynamic seemed to hold so much promise for the organization in its nascent days.
Just listen to what Anthony said about working for Jackson on the eve of his hiring.
“If Phil wants to come in and change that this late in my career, if it's going to help me win a championship, I'm with it," Anthony said. “... I haven't won anything [and] he's won a lot. I can learn a lot from him and his system, things that he wants to incorporate here. I'm hoping and praying this all works.”
It hasn't worked, of course. We’ll find out in the coming weeks just how much longer the Jackson-Anthony relationship lasts, but it certainly feels like Tuesday was the beginning of the end. And that’s a shame.