Melo opted to remain with the Knicks last week and is confident under Jackson.
New York Knicks star Carmelo Anthony has revealed that ultimately his free agency decision revolved around staying in New York or moving to the Chicago Bulls.
The 30-year-old eventually opted to remain in the Big Apple, despite holding meetings with the Bulls, the Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers.
Melo conceded that the Lakers were also in contention at one stage, but eventually his heart told him to stay in New York and reject the approach from the Bulls.
“I want to win. I don’t care about the money,” Anthony told ESPN.com. “I believe Phil [Jackson] will do what he has to do to take care of that.
“It was overwhelming,” Anthony said. “It was stressful in the final days, one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make.
“I was flip-flopping,” he admitted.
“It was hard. It was Chicago, but then after I met with L.A., it was L.A. But it came back to Chicago — and was pretty much always Chicago or New York. That’s a situation where I could have walked in now to an opportunity to compete for the next however many years.”
During the entire free agency process, it was suggested by experts that Chicago were arguably the best option for Anthony, considering that they gave him the best immediate opportunity at being successful and winning a championship.
However, after he spurned their advances, the Bulls went on to acquire Pau Gasol, Nikola Mirotic and Aaron Brooks to add depth and quality, while much is expected of Tony Snell and rookie Doug McDermott next season.
In contrast, it remains to be seen what first-year coach Derek Fisher is able to achieve at Madison Square Garden, but it is clear that the shake-up under Jackson has already begun and Anthony is excited about the new team-mates that he will have next year.
Both Tyson Chandler and Raymond Felton were traded to the Mavericks in exchange for Jose Calderon, Samuel Dalembert, Shane Larkin and Wayne Ellington as the Knicks will rely on Anthony, J.R. Smith, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Andrea Bargnani to lead the new recruits.
Amar’e Stoudemire also returns next season, but Anthony is certain that LeBron James’ move to the Cleveland Cavaliers will balance things out more so in the Eastern Conference with the Miami Heat looking vulnerable to start the new campaign without their talismanic leader.
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