Carmelo Anthony is no longer willing to join the Cleveland Cavaliers, according to latest reports. It seems that the New York Knicks superstar is only interested in waiving his no-trade clause for the Houston Rockets. For a few weeks, it was a two-team race for Carmelo as both the Cavaliers and the Rockets tried to acquire him. However, the small forward has made up his mind and if he gets traded, his destination will be Houston.
The Cavaliers are dealing with a lot of issues this offseason and Anthony doesn't want to part of it. While joining the team would probably mean reaching his first NBA Finals ever, the 33-year-old superstar wants to find a place where he will be happy and also have a lot of success.
According to the New York Post, Anthony has changed his mind and is no longer interested in playing for the Cavaliers, especially after Kyrie Irving's recent trade demand.
Anthony's problems in New York
New York Knicks have been trying to get rid of Carmelo Anthony for a long time. Former team president Phil Jackson even publicly commented on it, saying that Anthony would be better off somewhere else. Fortunately, the forward has a no-trade clause in his contract, which allows him to block any trade he doesn't want to be included in. If this wasn't the case, he would have been traded a long time ago.
It's not a secret that Anthony is having a lot of problems in New York, and the treatment he's received there is a big reason why he wants to find a stable team and city to play for.
Cleveland Cavaliers are, without any doubt, the best team in the East and they would be even better with Carmelo. However, it seems the All-Star scorer would rather pass on reaching the NBA Finals if he can be on a stable team.
Houston Rockets have a great roster and they acquired Chris Paul this summer. Adding Carmelo Anthony would make turn them into one of the best teams in the West and they could be a serious threat to the Golden State Warriors.
While it's unlikely that anyone will dethrone the Warriors next year, we could see Anthony and the Rockets face off against the Cavaliers in the finals.
Cleveland Cavaliers' issues
Kyrie Irving wants to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers and it's unsure how good the Cavaliers will be next season. LeBron James cannot guarantee that he will stay in Cleveland after next year and team's front office is just doing a bad job keeping it all together.
Joining the Cavaliers would mean that Anthony is might be the only star player left on the team in a year. Irving wants to leave and there's a good chance LeBron leaves as well. That would leave Kevin Love and Anthony as the best players on the Cavs and either of them could leave. Anthony has two more years left on his contract and he has a player option on the last year, which means he could become a free agent next summer.
