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QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:54 AM) Big IF there. Just like all of these other potential signings. If you're Melo, not sure that you want to waste one guaranteed year of sucking, and then maybe multiple years if none of those deals work out. In Chicago, Houston or Dallas you have guaranteed contenders from day one. Sigh, yet logic isn't going to be the deciding factor unfortunately. Everything is an IF, but I have little doubt in Phil's ability to land a star. He's going to have all the buzz and successes that Riley had, imo. Dude with that many rings and respect, add in deep pockets and the city of New York, people are going to come to Phil. I personally think Melo is just in a situation where he should leave cause the window is just too far down the road, but I fully buy into Phil (as long as he doesn't retire / have health issues) fixing the Knicks. I think Lebron will end up in New York in the next couple of years, possibly with KLove and others.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:48 AM) Hottest girl at the bar syndrome. Nobody thinks they have a chance so no one is trying. Lebron goes home crying and is out of the league next year. Lebron is on vacation, I think. He's got some Nike thing going on in Brazil or something (maybe that hasn't started yet though). His agent is handling everything (right now) and some reports indicate he's staying quiet while Melo goes through his process so that Melo (his good friend) can get his one moment. There have also been reports that Melo wants to beat Lebron and has no interest in teaming up with LBJ. He wants to show that he was the best pick out of that draft (and he's been quoted in the past as saying he should have been the top pick).

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:44 AM) Kevin Love is probably the top name next year, and 2016 is Durant. Dragic and Aldridge also caught my eye as unrestricted FA's in 2015. Just to note, Jimmy Butler is a restricted FA in 2015, so if the Knicks were to trade for him, he would have to sit there as a $3million cap hold, eating cap space they could use on other guys that year, which is why he makes very little sense for them. They'd also have to extend him before 2016 and, if they did that, they'd probably kill any chance they had at Durant. Knicks are going to have massive amounts of cap room in 15. The 3M cap hold for Butler will not impede their ability to sign Kevin Love and provides Phil and the Knicks with a young, attractive asset to have on the roster to go with Love and whomever else they plan on signing.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:36 AM) I still maintain that Mirotic makes almost zero sense for New York (same with Butler potentially) because those two guys would majorly eat into the 2015-2016 cap space that the Knicks supposedly want to open. Snell, Dunleavy, future draft picks are much better fits for that reason. Mirotic it all depends on what you negotiate, but probably can get him for 5M (+/- 1 to 2 M). Butler is ~2M this year and a 3.1M qualifying offer a year from now. The way the CBA works, you actually have a lot of flexibility in the year of a qualifying offer on an RFA and don't get caught up in the bird right issues that normally would happen so you can just hold off on signing Jimmy Butler to an extension and sign the high priced guys sooner, with only the 3.1M needing to be factored in from a cap space perspective, so Butler is actually a tremendous asset to have for a team looking at making a push in 15-16.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:32 AM) Possibly....I could see Snell/Niko/Boozer and picks. Mirotic can basically be signed for anything right? That could really help make the deal work. Needs to be a 3 year deal and supposedly he has a buy-out of about 2.6 million. For a long time people thought it would take somewhere between 6-9M per year, but with the falling out with Real Madrid, people are starting to think you can ultimately sign him for less.

If I was going to read into things, I think it is a good sign that Melo isn't flying back to NY to meet with Knicks and Knicks are meeting here. Again, it could be a total moot point though because Melo has a home in NY so he might have always been planning on staying here over the weekend and this is just Phil coming out to say...see, told you no one was going to totally sell you on taking less when you can make more and win in NY in another year when I get things built.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:25 AM) Somebody tweeted that we should know by end of weekend. Looks good for NYC. I don't know why that means it is good for NYC. I think at this point Melo knows where he wants to go. To be frank I think he's probably known all along and it was just a matter of confirming that through these processes.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:25 AM) Stumbled upon a NY message board...The majority think a suitable return for Melo would be Butler/Mirotic/Boozer and picks....Kinda seems like a lot, but I'd do that all day. No brainer..I do it. I do think if you negotiate, you can keep one of Butler / Miro.

Lakers, Bulls, and Knicks reps will all be in LA. Melo is in LA. I wonder if Bulls end up catching up with Melo today.

QUOTE (buhbuhburrrrlz @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:05 AM) Carmelo Anthony has always been about Carmelo Anthony. Winning? LOL He's 30 years old and wants a max deal. He's staying in New York. After this contract he can do the whole aging superstar chasing a title before he hangs it up. Technically, by going to a winning team, he could do a ton to his legacy and potentially put himself in a position, that with a strong 5 year run, he is recognized as one of the greatest to ever play the game. Think about it, say he wins 3 titles in 5 years, all of a sudden, he gets put up with the greatest of all time. And even after that 5 year run, at 35, he wouldn't necessarily not have the chance to win more rings, it would just likely not be with him as a cornsterone and other players emerging, which the Bulls could potentially be able to do, depending on what happened and how things were designed. Much less likely for that to happen in NY or LA. It is extremely possible in Houston, however, they do play in the west. I think the Bulls are better but someone could easily say Houston has a much more defined big 3. Bulls have much more depth but Harden / Dwight more star power then Rose / Noah (given Rose's injuries).

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:04 AM) I still think the 12+ hour meeting/get together is pretty telling. Who hangs out with people that long if you're not seriously considering it? Technically it was 9 hours. He ended up spending 6 w/Houston which was pretty telling, given it was supposed to be a 3 hour meeting. Dallas is clearly out of the picture, given the 2 hour meeting (partly shortened due to the extended Houston meeting).

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 11:01 AM) Right, so Taj, Melo and a max deal is totally doable. Again, the Knicks aren't going to just let Melo walk for nothing, just like Toronto and Cleveland didn't let Lebron and Bosh walk for nothing in 2010. That has always been my angle. If he wants to come here, they can figure the rest out. Which is why, to McGraw's tweets, all of this is kind of a moot point. Bulls probably spent very little time talking money and focused more about how they will win championships together and why Chicago is the place for him to be and where he can take his legacy to the next level. Technically, if Knicks were to tango, Bulls could keep Taj / Butler, give Melo the max, and sign either Niko or a player like Pau (using MLE) (+ get someone like DJ back as our back-up on the BAE). If you can't get DJ, you can definitely bring Kirk back.

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 10:59 AM) Someone correct me if i'm wrong but....can't the Bulls "offer" Melo the max via a sign and trade, AND still be able to keep Taj? It would necessitate moving Butler and maybe Niko, but in terms of cap flexibility, doesn't the sign and trade change up the numbers? If true, Melo telling the Knicks he wants to play in Chicago is all the leverage Chicago really needs. If you're the Knicks, you'll do the sign and trade basically for any reasonable offer. Maybe they don't take Boozer, but Butler and a future pick? They're turning that down over just letting Melo walk? No chance. Yes; As long as the Knicks are willing to make it work. They can offer about $20M without trading Boozer (amnestying him). Knicks still can offer most guaranteed because they can offer an extra year. Technically, they would not have to move Butler or Niko, problem is the Knicks may not be willing to tango. MJD, Snell, and all the other non-guaranteeds in a S&T would allow Bulls to get close to $20M (depending on where cap goes). If he wants more, you'd need to find other ways to make things work. Bulls obviously would prefer to use Boozer as a chip (vs. amnestying him). This is per Mark/Mike Deeks.

Maybe teams will know tonight / tomorrow?

McGraw with some very level-headed and what I presume to be very accurate reporting there. All of those tweets make complete and utter sense.

QUOTE (Iwritecode @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 09:55 AM) It sounds like those were at least temporary situations. A couple of the people I know have literally made it a lifestyle. One hasn’t had a job in the 10 plus years I’ve known him and another has never worked a day in her entire life. By temporary, it was pretty much 2 years (given the extended unemployment benefits that were out there). I still consider that pretty long-term.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 09:55 AM) If Melo wants a s***ty basketball situation, he can stay in New York. I wouldn't doubt the fact that Phil will bring in stars, I just think that means you have at least 1 more bad year (this year) followed by a better year (where you add a FA star or two) but really are 2 offseasons from being able to have the star power and depth needed to potentially win. That means Melo gives up another 2 years in his career and he's already on the wrong side of 30. However, he's such an incredibly gifted scorer that I think he'll be effective for a long time (given his strong shooting abilities).

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 09:55 AM) Kobe has a year, maybe two left. I'd put LA under everyone else. I think LA is above Dallas / Houston to be honest. Its LA. That is worth a lot and they will have tons of cap room to add stars after Kobe leaves too. LA can also offer more money then everyone but the Knicks.

QUOTE (Jake @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 09:52 AM) Just remember - it isn't just Carmelo is either all about the money or not at all about the money. Each aspect of changing teams has a price. Winning is worth a certain amount of lost earnings, moving his family nullifies a certain amount of the benefits of winning, etc. He could reject the Bulls for their inability to make a max offer without him being greedy. If max is 4/96 and we offer 4/64, his turning us down does not mean that it was 4/96 or nothing. In other news, I've been impressed with Melo in this process. When he left Denver, I saw him as a big baby who strong-armed his way out of town. Throughout the entire mess in NY, Melo has been quiet about his intentions and likely dissatisfaction with the Knicks. He hasn't been making public evaluations of each suitor. By all accounts, he has been incredibly good at keeping his private thoughts out of the rumor mill. Every rumor is "NBA executives think" or "people who are friends of Melo but haven't spoken to him in months believe." I really want Melo.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 09:46 AM) Only texts/tweets and a few kisses, or she actually cheated on you with him in bed? Not that the first couple things are acceptable, but I would be much more of a wreck if it was all of the above. Also, i would say F*** this vacation im out Personally, I don't differentiate. That is full blown cheating as far as I'm concerned (violation of trust). Regarding vacation, probably would be best for one of the parties not to be there, otherwise, hard for the kids to even enjoy themselves.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 09:46 AM) If there's one thing everyone needs to do - it's take a deep breath and stop believing everything you read. The absolute facts we have are that the Chicago Bulls had, by far, the best-planned, best looking recruitment greeting to Melo of any of these teams. The banners on the side of the UC were gorgeous. You know LA isn't going to adorn their building with Melo when the Black Mamba's coming today. So that'll be interesting. Of all the players in the NBA, Joakim Noah is trying the hardest in recruiting. Hell, he posted a Carmelo Anthony baby picture to his Instagram today. He's hilarious. In the end, if I were betting my house on it, I'd say Melo stays in New York. I'm proud of the effort the Bulls are putting forth, which started with Scottie and Larsa Pippen wooing Melo in France last week, and has continued throughoutt his entire week. You can bet your ass the Bulls find a way to meet up with Melo today while in LA. I'm certain the Bulls are trying to improve, for once, by making bold moves. I am very pleased by this. If they don't get Melo, I'm quite certain they'll call Minnesota with an offer of Boozer's contract and a whole lot of goodies to get Kevin Love in here. I don't want that to happen, because Carmelo is a much better fit with this roster, but we'll see. I look forward to it being two weeks from now. LA is a place I would not sleep on (if Jerry Buss were there, I'd have given the Bulls zero shot but thankfully Jim Buss is a buffoon). I don't think they will be a contender but Melo and Kobe are good friends and the organization has a crapton of banners to hoast and a hollywood marketplace for LaLa. But as a whole I agree with you. Glad you are back just in time to celebrate Melo coming to the Bulls!!! I was proud about what Pax / Gar and more importantly Thibbs and Noah put together. I still wouldn't be surprised if the Bulls quietly put out feelers to Lebron's agent. I don't know how you couldn't at least ask.

QUOTE (Iwritecode @ Jul 3, 2014 -> 09:31 AM) I know a few people. They won’t come right out and say it in so many words, but they sure don’t have any motivation to stop receiving that check from the government and actually go out and look for a job to support themselves. They are perfectly content letting other people support them. I knew people making 50-60K who lost there jobs at had zero motivation. In fact, the vast majority that lost their job in the recession, could have easily found other jobs, but opted out of it to sit around. Those were people with degrees who were qualified. They were "looking" if you mean, waiting around for a check hoping for a dream job to show up. Turned down other jobs which were comparable to what they had because it wasn't what they really really wanted and the cost/benefit of taking a job in their current spot vs. the government incentive wasn't that bad. I'd roughly say there were 20+ people I knew that did this at one point in time or another (some being good friends vs. just acquaintances / people within my work network).