Anthony has also met with the Mavericks, Rockets and Lakers.
The Chicago Bulls are reportedly sceptical over their chances of convincing Carmelo Anthony to leave New York and join them ahead of next season.
The 30-year-old is currently in the midst of a tour of the West after visiting the Bulls on Tuesday, with meetings with the Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers all taking place over the past two days.
While the Knicks are widely regarded as the favourites to retain Anthony given their ability to offer him a max deal worth $129m over five years, the Bulls arguably represent his best option should he decide to leave Madison Square Garden.
Anthony would not only be joining a team on the cusp of challenging for a title, albeit with a lack of scoring which his arrival would address, but he would also remain in the Eastern Conference which has proven to be less competitive than the West in recent years.
In addition, with the uncertainty surrounding the Miami Heat and their Big Three, joining forces with Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah could be a defining moment for Chicago as they look to end their long wait for another NBA championship.
However, it is understood that Chicago are ready to take their pursuit of Pau Gasol more seriously, which gives the impression that they are not so confident in their chances of landing Anthony.
“They’re worried that he’s headed back to New York,” a source told ESPN New York. “They’re more pessimistic than optimistic.”
Should that news filter through to both Houston and Dallas, then it is likely that both teams will begin to look elsewhere given the unlikeliness of Anthony moving over to the West to compete with the likes of the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers for a place in the NBA playoffs.
Meanwhile, the Bulls will need to persuade the All-Star to take a significant salary cut from what the Knicks are able to offer him, as after using the amnesty provision on Carlos Boozer to free up cap space, it is reported that they will only be able to offer $16m per year.
Melo will still meet with the Lakers on Thursday, and they will have Kobe Bryant present after the veteran guard flew in from a vacation in Europe to help with the recruitment process.
The Lakers are confident that their primary free agency target would compliment Bryant if they were to play together, but there is little argument against how effective Anthony’s scoring would be alongside Rose with Noah acting as the defensive anchor and leader of the Bulls.
Sceptics maintain that Anthony will ultimately return to New York next season and help team president Phil Jackson rebuild the roster, and with so many doubts over cap space and desire to move across conferences, the Knicks will be increasingly confident about seeing their star man back at the Garden next season if they can convince him that they have a successful plan moving forward.
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