Throughout the offseason, Carmelo Anthony was only willing to waive his no-trade clause for the Houston Rockets. However, as training camp approached, Anthony expanded his list of destinations and was ultimately traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In the trade, the Knicks received Enes Kanter, Doug McDermott, and a 2018 second round draft pick via the Chicago Bulls. However, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports the Knicks were willing to trade the 10-time All-Star to his preferred destination:
New York had been willing to do an Anthony deal with his preferred choice, Houston, that included Eric Gordon and Trevor Ariza, but the Rockets consistently rejected that idea, league sources said. Houston had become the focus of Anthony's trade request after the Rockets acquired All-Star guard Chris Paul, a close friend, in late June. But Houston needed a deal to include forward Ryan Anderson, who has three years and $60 million left on his contract.
As the Rockets were unwilling to trade Eric Gordon and Trevor Ariza, they were willing to move Ryan Anderson's remaining three-year, $60 million contract. However, the Knicks were not interested and it appeared a third team like the Portland Trail Blazers needed to get involved.
With Anthony having a better chance of competing for a championship with the Thunder, the Knicks can finally rebuild around Kristaps Porzingis.
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