Being a star in New York comes with constant criticism and potentially undeserved negative media attention, but Carmelo Anthony already knew that. Different types of trade rumors will seemingly surround the All-Star small forward until he’s no longer with the New York Knicks. Anthony re-signed with the Knicks to be a key part of their rebuilding plan, and if they trade him now it would signal the franchise giving up on that plan.
Anthony hasn’t had his best shooting season in 2015-16, but this has been his best all-around season by a long shot. His stats tell a specific story, and the eye test shows that he is clearly trusting his teammates more this season than in any other.
Anthony is often criticized by the media and fans for playing selfish, but this season he’s leading the Knicks in assists (4.2) with a career-high in assist percentage (21.9). Most importantly, Anthony has developed an excellent rapport with rookie Kristaps Porzingis.
According to NBA Stats, Anthony dishes out passes to Porzingis 20 percent of the time, with the highest number of assists per game coming when he gives the rookie the ball. Their chemistry off the court is evident, as Anthony watched his teammate during All-Star weekend courtside in the Rising Stars Challenge.
It’s true that Anthony would fetch the Knicks a first-round pick they are in desperate need of, and maybe even some potentially impactful young talent; but that doesn’t mean that they should give up on the Anthony-Porzingis core. President of Basketball Operations Phil Jackson has another summer to try and pluck a point guard from free agency to go with these two superstar scorers. He deserves a chance to make that happen.
