New York Knicks Rumors: Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant To Join Carmelo Anthony In New York?


New York Knicks rumors about Kevin Durant are turning heads. These Knicks rumors suggest that Durant and Kobe Bryant could join Carmelo Anthony for the 2016-17 NBA season. A report from CBS Sports addresses the chatter, showing just how easily it could all take place. Durant and Bryant are free agents at the end of the current NBA season, and the Knicks have the resources to pay for both players.

On the surface, it’s certainly an odd NBA rumor, especially since Durant would have his choice of destinations during the offseason. That’s assuming he would even want to leave the Oklahoma City Thunder. OKC can offer him the most money in a new contract, with that number likely going up even further following a new collective bargaining agreement. Still, there have been several reports of Anthony trying to convince him to come to NYC.

For these New York Knicks rumors to work out, Kobe Bryant would also have to come back for another NBA season. There have been several reports hinting that he will retire following the 2015-16 season, ending his time in the league with the Los Angeles Lakers. Age is starting to catch up with him, so it might not even help the Knicks to sign him at this point. Regarding all the rumors, Stephen A. Smith of ESPN also shared his opinion on what has been discussed.

“I can’t see it, to be quite honest with you. But who knows? Anything’s possible because Phil [Jackson] is in New York for Kobe and then there’s Durant and Melo, who would be there for anybody if that were to happen.”

Jackson has very few players left on the New York roster from when he took the job as team president. This past offseason, he signed Arron Afflalo, Robin Lopez, and Derrick Williams in order to add depth after stripping most of it down. Jackson also drafted Kristaps Porzingis and acquired Jerian Grant, but none of these players seem to have the allure necessary to draw Kevin Durant to Madison Square Garden.

Teaming up Carmelo Anthony with two other stars in the NBA is just too good of a rumor for sports analysts to not talk about. It has come up before and it will come up again, but the reality of it actually coming true is starting to slip away. As Anthony starts to also get older, a reality is that the short-term New York Knicks rumors could shift to the team trying to deal him for a younger package of players. That’s more realistic than expecting Kevin Durant to go play with Anthony simply because they are friends.

[Image Source: Brett Deering/Getty Images]

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