The NBA regular season tips off in less than one month from today, and Carmelo Anthony is still a member of the New York Knicks. Despite countless reports that Carmelo would be willing to waive his no-trade clause to join the Houston Rockets, the two teams have yet to strike a deal and time is running out before the preseason gets underway.
However, Carmelo has already "mentally moved on to Houston," according to a report by Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. While Carmelo to Houston rumors have subsided in recent weeks, his camp is "cautiously optimistic" that the Knicks will trade him before the team hosts their annual media day next week at the start of training camp.
Via the New York Daily News,
"Anthony’s camp is cautiously optimistic that a deal will be struck before Monday, and trying not to think about the potential media circus that will take place if Carmelo is still with the Knicks. Two weeks ago, Carmelo’s wife, La La, said the family thought a trade would have been completed by now."
"Mentally, Carmelo and his family have moved on to Houston. Reality is another story. Hopefully, Mills and Perry will have the right answers when they address the media on Friday because the Carmelo issue isn’t going away until he goes away."
The Knicks will open up the preseason on October 3rd against the Brooklyn Nets. Their first regular season game will come on Thursday, October 19th against Russell Westbrook, Paul George and the Oklahoma City Thunder in OKC.
As for the Houston Rockets, they'll be featured in the NBA's opening night double-header on Tuesday, October 17th. After the much anticipated Eastern Conference showdown between LeBron's Cavs and Kyrie Irving's Celtics, the new-look Rockets will take on the defending champion Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena. Both games will be aired on TNT. Whether or not Carmelo Anthony will be on the squad by then remains to be seen.
Note: We're just 27 days away from a new NBA season.
