Knicks Trade Rumors: Trade Deadline Inaction Spoils New York's Season

The New York Knicks put up an impressive performance against the Portland Trail Blazers in their first game since the resignation of head coach Mike D'Antoni. It was a dominant performance that ended up with a 40-point win, which was the Knicks' first win in their past seven games.

While their 121-79 beatdown of the Trail Blazers was certainly impressive, it's not nearly enough to make Knicks fans forget about how terrible their team had been playing since returning from the 2012 NBA All-Star break.

In light of all that's gone wrong for the Knicks, it's surprising that the only move they made before the March 15 trade deadline was allowing Mike D'Antoni to resign from his head coaching duties.

While trade rumors—such as the one regarding Carmelo Anthony wanting out of New York—were certainly outlandish, it's shocking that the Knicks didn't make any moves before the trade deadline, as they've all but sealed their fate by failing to make a trade.

The first reason why the Knicks are all but done this season by not pulling the trigger on a trade is because their eight-man rotation is certainly not working.

Knicks' rotation is all but working with talent they currently have

The Knicks certainly shouldn't be 19-24 overall with the kind of talent on their roster. With names such as Carmelo Anthony, Jeremy Lin, Amar'e Stoudemire, J.R. Smith, Tyson Chandler and Landry Fields, the Knicks should be a much better team than they currently are. 

"If it aint broke, don't fix it" isn't the mantra the Knicks should've been living by as the trade deadline came and went, because their starting and bench rotations are certainly broken and need some fixing.

The Knicks could've made progress in an extremely competitive Eastern Conference by dropping off some of the talent on their roster, such as J.R. Smith, Baron Davis, Mike Bibby or Bill Walker. In reality, if the Knicks want to be a better team and a more complete, cohesive unit, they should've unloaded the dysfunction that exists on their roster. However, they failed to do so, which certainly seals their fate for the remainder of the 2011-12 regular season.

Carmelo Anthony just doesn't work with Jeremy Lin and Amar'e Stoudemire

 With Carmelo Anthony in the starting lineup this season, the Knicks haven't exactly been a good team, accumulating an overall record of just 12 wins and 22 losses.

While I can't speak for the Knicks front office, I'm all but certain that's not the kind of record they were hoping for when they made the trade for 'Melo last season.

'Melo and Stoudemire certainly haven't gotten the job done in The Big Apple, and they've been even more unproductive as a duo since Lin emerged on the scene.

It's quite evident that the Knicks' best hope of being a competitive team in the Eastern Conference lies squarely on the shoulders of Lin and not Anthony. Without 'Melo, Lin led the Knicks to an impressive 8-1 record, which leads one to believe the Knicks are a better team when 'Melo's riding the pine rather than earning time on the court.

While it would have been somewhat wild to send away Anthony this season, there's no doubt the Knicks will have to consider the possibility of that taking place in the near future as they focus on the overall success of their franchise.

The New York Knicks are done for this season, and I wouldn't be surprised if a team such as the Milwaukee Bucks surpasses them in the East for the eighth seed heading into the Eastern Conference playoffs.

By not making a trade before the March 15 trade deadline, the Knicks sealed their fate of not earning a spot in the playoffs this season and not moving forward as a franchise into the future.

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