New York Knicks‘ Carmelo Anthony has a no-trade clause and close friend and Chicago Bulls guard Dwyane Wade doesn’t think he’ll waive it.
- New York Knicks (17-22)
- Chicago Bulls (19-20)
- Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
- Thursday, Jan. 12, 8:00 p.m. ET, TNT
The New York Knicks will face the Chicago Bulls Thursday night at Madison Square Garden just one night after a demoralizing loss in Philadelphia against the 76ers. The Knicks blew a 10-point lead with less than 2:30 remaining in the fourth quarter and lost at the buzzer on a T.J. McConnell turnaround jump shot.
With the team now at a season-low five games under .500, the practical decision would be to trade Carmelo Anthony and get the best first round pick possible. A practice that is more commonly known as tanking. The problem with that is Anthony would need to waive his no-trade clause, and according to Bulls guard Dwyane Wade, a close friend of Anthony’s, that’s not going to happen.
RELATED: New York Knicks choke away 10-point fourth-quarter lead, Lose at the buzzer vs. Sixers (Highlights)
Per Daniel Popper of The New York Daily News:
“He loves it here. He loves being here. His family loves it here. And he wants to win here. He’s going to be here as long as they want him here — win, lose or draw.”
When asked if he, Chris Paul, or LeBron James have advised Anthony to leave New York Wade said that it wasn’t their place.
“That’s not our role or our job. A man makes a decision. If he gets to that point in his career where he can’t do it here and he wants to do that, then that’s on him. That’s a decision that he’ll make. … We support him in whatever decision he wants to make for his career. And like I said, right now, his goal is eventually to do it here. But whatever happens, happens.”
Wade feels for his friend with the rough times he’s going through. Anthony never shared the post-season success that his similarly high profile friends have achieved.
“You want your friends to have success, and it’s been a little rough from that standpoint. It’s cool for me and CP and Bron that we all try to stay connected and keep each other uplifted, because it’s tough going through losing seasons and injury-plagued seasons and all that, which he’s dealt with the last couple years. Yeah man, it’s tough.”
Scouting Report: Bulls
Wade is averaging his lowest point total since his rookie season (’03-’04) and the Bulls are a hot mess right now. After head coach Fred Hoiberg benched Rajon Rondo for the second half of their game back on Dec. 30, Rondo was pulled from the rotation completely before injuries to Jimmy Butler forced him back. Rondo has been vocal with his displeasure about the situation in a typical Rondo way.
Good news for the Knicks tonight, though. According to Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago both Jimmy Butler and Nikola Mirotic will be out. Rondo? He’ll be playing.
Just bumped into Niko Mirotic at the airport in D.C. He is still sick. He is flying back to Chicago and will… https://t.co/e8WOxIMxkJ
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) January 11, 2017
Fred Hoiberg says Jimmy Butler is still in Chicago. He will not play vs. Knicks but he is feeling better…. https://t.co/HXDkCZPSOa
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) January 12, 2017
Hoiberg says Rajon Rondo will come off the bench tonight. https://t.co/hMDRuFAOyT
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) January 12, 2017
The Bulls are the worst three-point shooting team in the league, so the Knicks won’t have to worry about guarding the three-point line tonight. That’s a big relief considering the opponents have been shooting 39.1 percent from downtown against New York during their 1-9 stretch in the last ten games.
Melo’s Night
With Butler out of the lineup, Anthony won’t have to deal with a difficult defensive draw. It will likely be Doug McDermott (maybe even some Wade) who draws the tough task. Melo should have a good night against him.
Matchup to Watch
Much to the chagrin of Knicks fans everywhere Joakim Noah signed a $72 million contract to be Robin Lopez‘s replacement last summer. The injury-prone former Defensive Player of the Year has been everything fans feared he would be. Lopez hasn’t been the same player in new surroundings as his scoring (9.1 points per game) and field goal percentage (.478) have both dipped from 2015-16.
Lopez will be looking for revenge after Noah dominated their first matchup back in early November. It was Noah’s Chicago return and his best game as a Knick.