Knicks Trade Rumors: Pros And Cons Of Trading Carmelo Anthony

Con: Dividing The Locker Room

New York Knicks team president Phil Jackson has effectively divided the locker room. Whether that’s a fair or foul development, it’s the situation at hand—and the source of the collapse can be pinpointed to the feud between Jackson and Carmelo Anthony.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, the players are staging an open rebellion to Jackson and his insistence upon running the triangle offense.

"Players are privately fuming that they want no part of the organization’s summer slate of triangle offense regimen at the team’s suburban New York practice facility, league sources told The Vertical. In reality, there’s an open rebellion to the triangle – for the offense itself, and by extension, the discord and dysfunction that its implementation has burdened upon everyone."

By actually going through with a trade of Anthony, Jackson may alienate the locker room even more than he reportedly has already.

Whether or not you believe Anthony can be the No. 1 star, he’s one of the most respected players in the NBA. He’s Kristaps Porzingis’ mentor and an individual whose popularity and admiration ranges beyond basketball.

In addition to being one of the best scorers in NBA history, Anthony is a social activist who has earned recognition as one of the truly great people in sports.

By trading Anthony, a new leader would need to be found in the locker room. That’s a challenge that players will have to face and overcome in the future, but expediting the process could be harmful.

The question is: is there a leader in the locker room who’s ready to step into Anthony’s role?