Carmelo Anthony is trying to be as straightforward about his future as he can be.
"I want to retire in New York, I mean let's be quite frank," he told TNT. "I think a lot of people jumped the gun when I said I wanted to be a free agent."
Which is something he indeed said.
"I want to be a free agent," Anthony told the New York Observer. "I think everybody in the NBA dreams to be a free agent at least one time in their career. It's like you have an evaluation period, you know. It's like if I'm in the gym and I have all the coaches, all the owners, all the GMs come into the gym and just evaluate everything I do. So yes, I want that experience."
Now, the likely real reason Melo wants to be a free agent? It makes him eligible for a five-year, $129 million contract, while he could only sign a four-year $95 million one now. So it's just common sense to wait for the bigger, longer deal.
Melo is under contract for next season, but has an early termination opt out after this one. So he can test free agency, or in other words, sign that new, longer deal. And there's really no question the Knicks will offer Anthony that contract, seeing as they haven't had a player like him to build around since really, Patrick Ewing.
So chill, Knicks fans. Melo isn't going anywhere. Probably.
