Amar'e Stoudemire, New York Knicks, Beat Sense Into Carmelo Anthony
Throughout the summer and leading up to the Denver Nuggets-New York Knicks showdown at Madison Square Garden December 12, rumors have constantly circulated about whether or not Carmelo Anthony will finally be traded.
Everyone knows Anthony’s desired destination is back home in the Big Apple. The question remains is if Denver will oblige? How much does Denver management value the trade pieces New York has to offer?
We saw what happened with Cleveland and Toronto with LeBron James and Chris Bosh. The teams were essentially left with nothing to show for their superstars abandoning them.
Denver would be silly to do the same as they know Anthony is not going to re-sign with the Nuggets. Once the season is over, ‘Melo is adios. He’s leaving Denver whether they like it or not. They may as well get something in return for their superstar as they will be forced to rebuild for the future.
Anthony missed the previous two games because his knee was bothering him. He conveniently was good to go for the matchup with his potential future teammates.
Anthony put on a nice show for the Knicks fans. Although he struggled with his shot in his first game back, connecting on just 11-of-27 attempted shots and missing all six of his three-pointers, ‘Melo still put up 31 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.
Most importantly, the Garden cheered Anthony, showing them how much they would appreciate seeing ‘Melo in blue and orange.
Anthony was outshined Sunday afternoon by Knicks leader Amar’e Stoudemire.
Stoudemire is proving he is worth every penny the Knicks gave him over the summer. Stoudemire recorded his eighth straight 30-plus point game in the Knicks’ eighth straight victory.
Stoudemire led the Knicks with 34 points, eight rebounds and four assists in the Sunday matinee 129-125 victory.
Stoudemire is proving to the world that he is every bit the leader and superstar he claimed to be. With the impact that Stoudemire has had on the New York Knicks, almost single-handedly reviving basketball in the “Mecca,” Stoudemire should be the leading candidate for the MVP award at the moment. No player has made the impact on their team and city thus far this season.
With Denver taking a turn for the worse this season and the Knicks thriving at 16-9 and tied for the fifth seed in the East, it is being reported by ESPN that Carmelo Anthony said following the loss that New York is the only team he will sign an extension with.
Now that Anthony has expressed he's fully committed to signing with New York, Denver may be forced to finally give into Anthony’s demands and move him as they are left to move on to a new era.
The Knicks now have the upper hand in negotiations with Denver. How quickly will Denver fold and can the Knicks potentially save Landry Fields or Danilo Gallinari?
The only thing that matters is that Carmelo Anthony seems destined to play for the New York Knicks at some point this year or next. With MVP leading candidate Amar’e Stoudemire captaining the ship, basketball is officially back in New York City.
