Carmelo Anthony sets scoring record

Carmelo Anthony's magical 62-point night shows why he should never leave New York

http://l.yimg.com/os/388/2012/05/30/...png_005116.png By Adrien Wojnarowski 7 hours ago Yahoo Sports




Across a majestic Madison Square Garden performance of 62 points, Carmelo Anthony would've been wise to take a long look around, letting the thunderous noise, the love, wash down upon him. This is your life 'Melo, the best possible destination for the legacy of a ring-less superstar.

The losing, the decaying roster, has inspired 'Melo to consider closely the possibilities of free agency this summer. WIthin the past several weeks, a longtime confidant of Carmelo Anthony confesses, something changed. Never did he believe there was a chance Anthony would leave the New York Knicks – never the Madison Square Garden stage, never the $129 million contract extension.

Only now, the gloom of the Knicks' season – the uncertainty of the franchise's future – left that man to believe it's possible Anthony could leave New York in free agency.
"Chicago is much more in play for him than L.A.," the source said.
The Bulls traded Loul Deng for draft picks and are leaning strongly toward using the amnesty provision on Carlos Boozer. They could create a maximum contract slot for Anthony, pairing him with Derrick Rose . For Anthony, it is leaving a cap-strapped team through 2015 for a Chicago proposition with significant risks of its own. No one can be sure of Rose's return to his MVP greatness, but everyone can be sure of one thing: The franchise's mandate isn't winning championships, but sidestepping luxury and repeater taxes to turn the fattest possible profits for the owner.

As the Bulls have let talented player upon talented player leave because of money – Omer Asik and Kyle Korver and Deng – they've shown themselves to be a big market franchise with small-market sensibilities.

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http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/0PW...42122769774407Carmelo Anthony scored 62 points on just 35 shots against the Bobcats. (AP)

There's something else, too: Between the 22 combined championships in Chicago and Los Angeles, there's no adulation for a star who fails to deliver a title. The Knicks have gone 40 years without a parade – and could go another 40 without one – and still Anthony would forever be treated with a level of reverence in New York. There are no beloved ex-Hall of Famers like Patrick Ewing and Bernard King in L.A. and Chicago – just players who won championships, and just those long ago forgotten. For those who think 'Melo's burden has left him too beleaguered in New York, it could be far worse elsewhere. Knicks ownership has turned the franchise over to him, and that'll only escalate in free agency. Whatever he wants, they'll give him. Owner Jim Dolan let him run out Mike D'Antoni and Jeremy Lin, let him have his eccentric workout coach on staff for a significant six-figure salary. They've centered the marketing on him; his Jordan Brand Nike deal is worth a mint in a Knicks uniform.
Truth be told, the grief that comes with this dysfunctional franchise is far less than he'd get with the Bulls and Lakers. In the end, Anthony would have to give up $40 million guaranteed to leave New York for opportunities that offer marginally better chances at championships. Anthony was fabulous on Friday night at the Garden – passing King's franchise record of 60 points and Kobe Bryant's Garden record of 61 – with ease.
In the end, this is the essence of Carmelo Anthony: a peerless scorer deserving of holding the franchise's and arena's forever records. Every generation has its stars who were spectacular, but never complete enough to be the centerpiece of a champion. There's no shame there. This was a night when 'Melo's legacy as a scoring ace delivered him into the brightest light of this season, on basketball's most glorious stage at the Garden.
For all the noise and all the love washing down upon him, Carmelo Anthony needed to understand that for his own good, his legacy, there's nowhere better for a ring-less superstar on a max scholarship than beneath those dusty, old championship banners from so long ago. This was 'Melo's night, his forever moment at Madison Square Garden. For him, there should be nowhere else.

Yep,, put on quite a show Fib... everything he threw up went in...
But,,, he might not be a Knick too much longer. Knicks can't win with him.
Kobe says the Lakers don't want him either... hmmm,,, wonder why?

"Here to stay"LaLa said....................

By Brian Lewis

January 27, 2014 | 8:04pm
http://thenypost.files.wordpress.com...0&h=480&crop=1
Photo: Jeff Zelevansky


The Knicks are held hostage by the burning question of whether Carmelo Anthony is staying or leaving, and so far the star forward has been coy and noncommittal. But the person who presumably knows Anthony best — his wife LaLa — said he not only wants to stay in New York, but will stay.
“I definitely think he will stay. I know that he wants to stay, and I support him wherever he wants to go,’’ LaLa Anthony said in an interview with Bravo TV’s “Watch What Happens Live”. “Listen, I used to live in Denver with him: If I can live in Denver, I can live anywhere. I just want him to be happy.’’
Anthony, the reigning NBA scoring champion who is under contract through 2014-15, has said he’ll opt out of his deal after this season to test free agency. But opting out isn’t the same as leaving, since he can earn $33 million more by opting out and re-signing with the Knicks. The question is can the disappointing Knicks — 17-27 going into Tuesday’s game versus Boston — build a champion around Anthony?
“That’s the only thing I care about. Anything else is irrelevant to me as far as when it comes to basketball. Championship is the only thing that’s on my mind, is the only thing I want to accomplish, I want to achieve,’’ said Anthony, adding ominously “and I’m going to do what I got to do to get that.’’
That could mean scoring 62 points every night as he did last Friday, or leaving for a contender, or pressuring the Knicks into giving him a better supporting cast. In essence, get a ring by any means necessary.
“That’s my motivating factor. Nothing else even motivates me anymore: Just that,’’ said Anthony. It was a more passive-aggressive version of the prodding friend Kobe Bryant used in the summer of 2007 to force the Lakers to trade for Pau Gasol, earning the Black Mamba two more rings. It’s also the kind of move Bryant seemed to suggest Anthony use on the Knicks.
“It’s important for the organization to understand the level of competitiveness that you have, that you won’t tolerate having a team that is not in contention for an NBA championship, which is what I did,’’ the injured Bryant said Sunday, before watching Anthony score 35 points in the Knicks’ 110-103 win over the Lakers.
“It rubbed a lot of people the wrong way but sometimes you got to kick down a few doors and [tick] some people off and trust that it will pay off in the long run. If you are willing to do that, more times than not, you will be OK. … I wanted to make sure I had a team around me that could contend for a championship.’’
Asked how that would impact his decision whether to stay a Knick or seek greener pastures — or more competitive teams — elsewhere, Anthony backpedaled like a defensive back.
“It’s hard to say at this very moment how it affects me, but for me I’ve got to keep that motivation into the “now,” and when that time comes, you deal with that situation then,’’ said Anthony. “My confidence level [in the Knicks] will never change. We’re having our trouble right now, but we’ve got to deal with that.
“I can’t turn my back and just say I don’t want to deal with it. I’ve got to deal with it face-to-face, and that’s what I’m doing right now. Hopefully we get through this slump we’re in and try to make a push. But right now I’m taking it one game at a time and see what happens. When that time comes for me to figure out what I want to do with my future, then that time will come and I’ll deal with that at that time.’’
Anyone wondering what reason Anthony would have to stay in New York should remember he has over 33 million of them, to paraphrase Terrell Owens’ agent. He can command a five-year, $129 million deal from the Knicks, while other teams like the Lakers or Bulls can only give him a maximum of $96 million over four years.
Coach Mike Woodson said: “A lot of things play into it when you’re desperately trying to win a title. We all chase it. I’ve been chasing it too, as a head coach. So it’s good that he thinks along those lines.’’