With free agents officially able to sign new contracts since Thursday, Carmelo Anthony has yet to make a decision. While the New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers were considered the favorites, the All-Star has “regained interest” in the Chicago Bulls.
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As a result, the Knicks are now “freaked out” about re-signing Anthony according to ESPN’s Marc Stein via Basketball Insiders’ Tommy Beer:
Marc Stein, on ESPN radio re: Melo situation: "Knicks went from confident, to freaked out, to confident, now they are back to freaked out."
— Tommy Beer (@TommyBeer) July 11, 2014
After meeting with the Lakers, Anthony met with the Knicks and the franchise was not able to get a commitment from him. While Anthony was expected to make his decision as early as Sunday, this delay has apparently worried New York — especially with Phil Jackson not receiving responses back from him since.
For the Lakers, the franchise is put in a bit of a difficult position as they wait for Anthony’s decision. While Kobe Bryant is confident about the team’s Plan B should his friend sign elsewhere, they could potentially lose out on some key free agents.
While the Lakers are solely focused on signing Anthony, Plan B could include players like Greg Monroe, Trevor Ariza, Lance Stephenson, and Isaiah Thomas to name a few.
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