Trade rumors involving Carmelo Anthony had been widespread all season long and even if the nine-time NBA All-Star had repeatedly said that he will not abandon the New York Knicks, different speculations just keep on emerging.
SB Nation noted that if the Knicks want to get the most value out of Anthony, the time to trade him would be right now while he is "still productive and has three years left on a max deal that will look more affordable once the cap goes up this summer".
Recently, new trade scenarios were proposed by CBS New York's Tom Bogert, who suggested five different situations where Anthony and the Knicks will arguably find a win-win solution to their current debacles.
One such scenario is a trade sending the 31-year-old forward to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for three players, namely 2015 second overall pick D'Angelo Russell, 2014 seventh overall pick Julius Randle, and veteran All-Star center Roy Hibbert.
Bogert noted, however, that "the only reason that Los Angeles even gets in the (trade) discussion is due to its market and Anthony's no-trade clause".
The Lakers had been long-time suitors of Anthony and now that Kobe Bryant is set to exit the team's roster for good, then the former scoring champion may change his mind and accept Mitch Kupchak's invitation once and for all.
With Anthony, the Hollywood squad will get a legitimate superstar to replace the retiring Bryant. The team can also snag a free agent or two to build around Anthony as they will have enough salary cap space this summer.
As for the existing roster, they will still have Jordan Clarkson and Lou Williams to man the point, Larry Nance Jr. and Nick Young in the wings, and Brandon Bass and Ryan Kelly up front.
Snagging big man Hassan Whiteside from the Heat would give the Lakers a frightening starting lineup composed of Whiteside, Anthony, Nance, Clarkson, and Williams or Young.
Meanwhile, the Knicks will gain tremendously with a lineup composed of three of the youngest stars in the league in Randle, Russell, and Kristaps Porzingis. Having Hibbert is a huge plus as he can continue to mentor Randle and Porzingis until they are ripe enough to come out on their own.
The trio will grow together more appropriately than the Anthony-Porzingis tandem and would be a fearsome young core when they reach their prime years, which also has star-power and brand-lifting potential that is ideal for the New York market.