Kevin Love and Carmelo Anthony are two of the hottest names at the moment in the NBA. Apart from their superb performances, both superstars will become free agents soon and they will have the opportunity to sign with any team of their choice. Carmelo’s contract expires this summer and Kevin Love will have the opportunity to opt out of his final year with the Minnesota Timberwolves after the end of the 2014-2015 season. Although up to now we’ve heard of many potential destinations for each one, we have never heard of a scenario that wants them joining forces.
Surprisingly, such a scenario is not far from reality. As it’s being reported, the New York Knicks are eyeing Love and assuming they retain Carmelo Anthony for the next season and the ones to come, Love might be the next superstar to arrive in NYC. Kevin Love won’t have the option to switch teams before the summer of 2015 unless the Wolves agree on a trade for him. It’s no secret that he is dissatisfied with the current state of the team and he will most probably pack his things and vanish once he has the chance. That has put the Timberwolves in deeper thoughts. Should they trade him now that they have a chance, now that his value is really high?
No matter what Minnesota does, Love will have the chance to hit the market in the summer of 2015. Of course, several teams around the league are already considering his availability. Earlier in the season, the Los Angeles Lakers were considered as one of the top destinations for him. It just makes sense. Love would be a great fit alongside Kobe Bryant and he could lead the Lakers to the post-Kobe era.
Nevertheless, the possibility of him joining Carmelo Anthony in New York is gaining some ground as of lately. Anthony is expected to stay in New York although he has the chance to depart this summer. Whilst the team is not playing well this season, it will just be too difficult for him to seek for a better environment. New York is a big market, Melo is loved by the fans and despite the bad course of this season, the team has been good in general since Melo’s arrival.
On top of that, if Kevin Love decides to come to New York, the Knicks will instantly become title contenders. The duo of Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Love looks like a very scary one. Really, both of them are terrific shooters and scorers. Both of them can be the co-leaders of the team while Love would be a great upgrade on the defensive part of the game for the Knicks. Love is one of the best rebounders in the league and a double-double machine.
Of course, there is a bunch of things the New York Knicks should take care of before getting into the pursuit of Love. The Knicks will be a totally different team in the 2015-2016 season and that’s mainly because a bunch of contracts will have expired by then. Of course, the Knicks want to get rid of some of them, like Amar’e Stoudemire’s colossal one. Stoudemire is owed $23 million next season while his minutes will once again be limited due to his permanent health issues. Andrea Bargnani is another player the Knicks will want to get rid of and thankfully for the team, his contract also expires after the end of the next season.
The same doesn’t go for Tyson Chandler. Although Chandler will be an unrestricted free agent next summer, he would be a great fit alongside Kevin Love. The Knicks are expected to try to re-sign the former All-Star center, who is a defensive anchor. With Chandler working in the middle, Kevin Love and Melo would have all the space they need to perform their magic from the perimeter.
So is such a scenario possible?
Yes it is. On the one hand, it might sound like too good to be true. However, there simply no reason why Kevin Love would choose to go somewhere else, when he has the chance to play alongside another superstar and chase a ring. After all, after the next season, both Melo and Love will be in their primes and they will want to chase a championship. The Knicks will have the financial flexibility to offer a tempting contract to Love after they get rid of those big contracts.
This scenario looks also realistic from the players’ perspective. Assuming that Carmelo will choose to stay in New York, as he will see that there lies his future and with Kevin Love sick of playing for a team with no chances to win a title, joining forces will seem like a rational option. In fact, we’ve seen that this “star marriage” trend has gained lots of ground as of lately. Since the Big Three joined forces in Miami, several other teams tried to follow and bring their own stars together. No matter the result, this technique was proven right.
Of course, apart from the Knicks, several other teams around the league are already trying to recruit love. The latest reports state that Joakim Noah spoke to Love about the possibility of him joining the Chicago Bulls. This discussion took place during the All-Star Game. However, Love has more than a year ahead of him to make up his mind and choose where he will play for the continuation of his career.
There is still a long time ahead before Kevin Love’s future is decided. For now, the Knicks should focus on their final push for a playoff seed and after that they will have to try their best to re-sign Carmelo Anthony. Only then would such a scenario with Love and Melo playing together make sense. However, if you are New York Knicks fan, you have a reason to stay optimistic about your favorite team.
Ron Leyba is the content manager of Fantasy Basketball Money Leagues – premier source of fantasy basketball updates, rankings and rumors. For more of his fantasy basketball updates, follow Fantasy Basketball Money Leagues Google+ account.