Carmelo Anthony did not exactly have a very impactful year with the Los Angeles Lakers last season. Then again, you could say that Melo's contributions were overshadowed by all the negativity that surrounded the squad for pretty much the entire year. At this point, however, without a contract extension offer on the table, it seems like Anthony could be on his way out of Hollywood before the new campaign starts.

All hope is not lost, though. An anonymous NBA general manager told Sean Deveney of heavy.com that he believes that the Lakers will eventually sign the 10-time All-Star to an extension:

“They have a lot to sort out obviously,” the GM said. “But as more things get set, they’ll probably get back around to bringing him in. It’s just, at this point, you don’t know what might happen with Westbrook and whether you might need to take on players, so you see that around the league a lot—teams have 10, 11, 12 players signed and there’s no hurry to fill in the last spots until you see how the other stuff plays out.”

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2IGnBKIS4qqxcc2NApVLgG?si=003a67f829a744ea

There is indeed a lot of uncertainty surrounding the Lakers right now, and it seems clear that Carmelo Anthony's contract isn't currently considered a top priority for the front office.

NBA insider Sean Bulpett echoed the unnamed GM's thoughts on Melo's extension. According to Bulpett, the Lakers will likely start considering Anthony's new deal if their offseason plans don't go as well as they hope:

“I think he’s one of the guys who will be one of the last pieces to be decided,” Bulpett said in a video interview. “When teams finish making or finding out what moves they can or, maybe more important, cannot make this summer, and they are getting ready for the season, it’s, ‘OK, this is what our roster looks like.’ There’s a player out here, but does he fit with what you’re trying to do? I think it’s going to take a while for Carmelo, unless Darvin Ham says, ‘Yes, I see a role for this guy and I want him.’ At this point, Carmelo is coming in at a reasonable number.”

This is, sadly, the harsh reality Melo is living in right now. He's well past his prime and he's become a bit of an afterthought at this point in his career. Be that as it may, the 38-year-old has already been linked to a couple of title hopefuls next season, so it's possible that the Lakers might end up losing him if they continue to linger.