It’s probably a little too late for Jim Boeheim to voice his opinions on whether or not his former player, Carmelo Anthony, should’ve stayed with the Knicks or gone to the Bulls, but here it is. Boeheim is right, of course, but it seems that Melo’s belief in the system that Phil Jackson is trying to build in New York is what might’ve kept the superstar put; either that or the extra $47 million he got for staying with the Knicks. Factor Phil, money, his wife, Lala and the glitz and glamour of New York and it was all a recipe to keep Melo with the Knicks.
“Just from a basketball point of view it would have been better to go to Chicago because they’ve got better players,” Boeheim, who coached Anthony on Syracuse’s national championship team in 2003, said on Monday. “But he wanted to be in New York and he wants to see if they can turn it around there. I think that’s a great thing.”
Would Anthony had left if Jackson was not hired to right the Knicks ship?
“I would think so. He stayed because he believes Phil,” Boeheim said. “Derek Fisher, he knows the game. If you’re going to pick a coach who hasn’t coached, he would be the guy I would pick. I think he’s a great choice. I talked to Derek a little bit. I think he’s really smart. I think he’ll be a really good coach. I think they’ll show significant improvement this year. If they get a couple of guys down the road, I think they’ll be good.”
The one thing that stands out is that many people know Melo wants to win and win now. The Knicks didn’t seem to provide that option for him. On the other hand, the Bulls with a healthy Derrick Rose, along with a team whose defense would build a perfect support for Melo definitely looked that the way to the ring for Melo. Either way, Melo has made his decision and committed himself to the Knicks.
[h/t NBC Sports]