Los Angeles Lakers: Latest rumors before 2017 NBA free agency begins

Cross Carmelo off Lakers’ wish list

Even with Phil Jackson done in New York, the Knicks are looking at a future without Carmelo Anthony. The relationship appears beyond repair. Carmelo has requested a buyout. The team is more interested in a trade, but a parting of ways seems like the eventual outcome.

The Lakers, however, shouldn’t get their hopes up for landing the Knicks’ star small forward. There’s been a lot of recent discussion about Anthony potentially joining Los Angeles somewhere down the line. That appears to be off the table, though, at least for now.

Here’s the latest from the NY Daily News‘ Frank Isola:

"According to a person familiar with Anthony’s thinking, Carmelo is no longer enamored with playing in Los Angeles if it means having to be away from his son for an extended period of time."

Any interest in Carmelo would likely only come into play if the Lakers missed out on George next offseason. However, with that seeming less and less likely with every passing day, a possible partnership between Anthony and Los Angeles probably wouldn’t have come into play anyway. For those of you holding out hope, I’d begin looking for a new pipe dream.

The odds were always long of Carmelo wearing the purple and gold. Based on Isola’s comments, the odds are about as close to nil as they’ve ever been. Let’s hope Johnson has a different backup plan in place.