If you were to bet during the pandemic which player would be on the Knicks list for 2020-21, Elfrid Payton or Carmelo Anthony, the smarter game was the former star of Syracuse.
But Payton went on a Zoom call from Portland on Sunday after the Knicks disappeared, talking about his match with Blazers superstar Damian Lillard – still Anthony’s teammate.
Payton stabilized as a goalkeeper during the Knicks’ 8-9 start. Anthony chose to sign with the Blazers again for at least $ 2.6 million of the NBA veteran. The Blazers are in desperate need of Anthony now, with the pins of CJ McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic, for an extended period.
Should Knicks have played harder for Anthony, given that they were stuck with $ 18 million in the maximum salary gap?
One case could be argued, yes, due to their lack of offensive talent – ranked 30th in the league averaging 101.3 points.
On the other hand, the case is stronger Knicks President Leon Rose made the right call not to make him his all-in former client in November. The Post reported that Rose’s dream duet, after taking over the job, added Chris Paul and his friend Anthony.
Anthony, 36, is still attracting attention. His presence could have been disruptive if things had not gone well in terms of playing time and touching the ball. More on the subject, the Knicks have established an identity as a ball club, primarily defensive. This is not Anthony’s business card.
Could Julius Randle have this outing season with Anthony, who plays both small and power-forward, on the roster? Probably not. Randle needs the ball, he has most of the goods. For much of his career, so did Anthony.
Playing a smaller role in a winning program in Portland, which featured Lillard and McCollum, is an easier proposition than Anthony, reducing his role to a Knicks cast that would have started the 2020 campaign. 21.
Maybe Randle didn’t have the confidence to become the alpha male of the team with Anthony next to him in the starting lineup.
In addition, RJ Barrett was moved to a smaller role, with Reggie Bullock at the beginning of the guard, to give Barrett fewer ball handling tasks. Anthony’s presence would have erased Bullock and given Barrett the role of guardian.
Bullock, who doesn’t need a rock, started all the games when he was healthy – 15 of the top 18. He was going to miss Sunday’s game with a sore throat. As long as Bullock was available, coach Tom Thibodeau remained with the same starting unit.
“I think we have a pretty good man,” Payton said Sunday. “Everyone gives each other space to do what they do well. And the boys are, RJ found a very good groove, play very well. Julius does it all year round. ”
Barrett, despite his 3-point shooting problems, was a relentless bull with a non-stop engine. He may have been in an offense in which Anthony would like the ball – more to shoot than to create.
Barrett flirted with Anthony before his debut season in the Columbia takeover games. Anthony could have served as a great mentor, but you never know how that would have played out.
Remember his former Denver teammate Chauncey Billups accused Anthony of caring more about his stats than winning.
“It meant too much because he could have games where he was 20, 22 [points], we win the game and he is upset, “Billups said in 2019.
As a Bulls coach, Thibodeau followed Anthony when he was a free agent in 2014 and worked with him at Team USA.
“He had an incredible career – a great one of all time,” Thibodeau said before the game. “It simply came to our notice then. A tall guy, he represented himself well. He accomplished quite a lot. ”
In the early days of training camp, Anthony said the stars were not lined up for a Knicks reunion.
“It simply came to our notice then [of consideration]Anthony said. “The Knicks were moving and trying to figure out which way they wanted to go. I’m sure they have a plan. I don’t think getting in and trying to confuse their plan was good for either side.
“They are rebuilding and realizing what is in their near future. I personally wanted to be part of a situation I was already comfortable with. I felt it suited me at this time when I am right now this year. ”
In his second season with the Blazers, Anthony averaged 12.2 points, shooting 40.5 percent – 45 out of 3. He has just 1.2 assists in 25 minutes.
As Jeff Van Gundy noted, the Knicks “don’t go anywhere” until they improve their “offensive talent.”
With a new order from Randle and Barrett set, maybe adding Anthony to the trading term is not crazy. Of course, the Blazers, who are proud to resurrect Anthony’s career last season, will not be eager unless the current injuries torpedo their season by the trading deadline at the end of March.
Portland signed Anthony to a one-year deal, with his eyes on a deep playoff. The Knicks are trying to avoid another lottery. They want to be on the verge of a playoff race for the first time in the 2013-14 season, when they participated until the last two days.
With essentially 10 skilled teams, – 7-10 seeds face in a game event – the Knicks could sneak in. There were eight entering the action on Sunday.
The refusal to make a big play for Anthony in November was the clever move. But it does not exclude anything in the future.