Knicks Links: The Cavaliers lost, so let the Carmelo Anthony rumors commence

Ahh, there’s nothing like the fresh, yet somehow revolting smell of fresh NBA offseason rumors. And make no mistake, the Knicks might be trying to rebuild, but they’ll undoubtedly take that bottle of offseason musk, slather some on their wrists, rub it on their neck, dump a little down their pants, and drink a little for good measure.

The Cavs lost to the Warriors (everyone was very surprised by this), so the semi-annual rumors of Carmelo Anthony going to the Cavs to play with longtime buddy LeBron James are now in full swing. Buckle up!

Here’s some listening material:

What’s good in Knicks land?

— So, as previously mentioned, the Cavaliers lost to the Warriors in the NBA Finals, and it wasn’t particularly close. Thus, the arms race is on once again, and the most attainable (if expensive) gun seems to be the Knicks’ own Carmelo Anthony.

From two different sources — Stefan Bondy of the NY Daily News and Marc Berman of the NY Post — the prevailing theory right now is that the Knicks won’t trade Carmelo, they’ll cut him.

From Bondy:

Cleveland has very limited ways to improve this offseason to keep pace with the Warriors, having already entered salary cap hell while dealing away all their first-round picks until 2020.

Many around the league believe the Cavs will look to deal Kevin Love, who matches up poorly against the Warriors and was shooting just 38 percent heading into Friday’s Game 4. But Love for Anthony isn’t going to happen. It’s a nonstarter for Cleveland, which rejected that proposal before the trade deadline.

Berman speculates the Knicks could use the stretch provision on Anthony, which allows them to waive his salary and spread it out:

The 33-year-old Anthony has two years and $54.1 million left on his five-year pact. If Jackson were to cut Anthony between July 1 and Aug. 31, under the provision, the $54.1 million would be spread evenly onto the cap across five years.

Hence, Anthony’s cap hit for 2017 would be $10.8 million — as opposed to $26.2 million if he remains on the roster as starting small forward. That would be an extra $15.4 million of cap space this summer for Jackson to add a defensive stalwart.

Look, I’m no expert, but this all sounds pretty dumb. I guess that’s why I don’t get paid the big bucks.

— In related news, JR Smith wants Carmelo to join the Cavs.

— Kristaps Porzingis is going to be a movie star! Well, a documentary star at least:

Jeremy Schaap is host and traveled last June to the seacoast village of Liepaja to spend time with Porzingis, his brothers and his parents. Footage was filmed in the house where he grew up (his parents still live there) and the Baltic Sea beach minutes away at which the 7-foot-3 forward spent relaxing times despite military detritus left over from World War II.

“He’s the most famous Latvian in the world,’’ Schaap told The Post. “From what I could tell in my few days there, they take a lot of pride in him.”

I’ve already set my DVR.

— Former Knick Mike Sweetney apparently tried to kill himself during his rookie year, he told Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype:

“I remember the night,” Sweetney told HoopsHype. “We were in Cleveland one night and I just took a bunch of pain pills, hoping it would take me out. But I woke up the next morning thinking, ‘Well, it didn’t work.’ That’s how bad it was.”

Scary stuff, man. Very glad that he’s gotten his life together recently, including dropping a lot of weight:

“It was really about getting my mentality right. The main reason I did it was just my life, to make sure that I’m around for my children. I did it for that and then, the next thing you know, some good opportunities basketball-wise started falling into place. It was really about being more disciplined. It wasn’t just about going on a diet, it was about changing my lifestyle. In the past, I would go on a diet and lose weight, but I’d always gain it back. This time, I changed my lifestyle by cutting out red meat, pork and alcohol completely. I’m eating a lot of chicken, fish and vegetables, and drinking a lot of water. I knew I had to change my life.”

— The Knicks have been scouting French point guard Frank Ntilikina pretty heavily leading up to the Draft, and apparently the interest is mutual.

— Shea Serrano at The Ringer writes about which NBA players should be “promoted” and “demoted,” including appearances from three Knicks. I’ll just share the one, but read the article:

Carmelo Anthony: DEMOTED to Knicksian Scapegoat. What I don’t understand is how the Carmelo Anthony situation in New York can be both so very interesting and also completely uninteresting at the same time. What happened here? And what happened to his career? Am I just being overly dramatic? No, right? I feel cheated. Do you remember how exciting it was when we all found out he was going to New York during that 2011 season? It felt like we were heading toward high-stakes basketball in the Garden again. And now? It’s just a million fart noises.

— Amar’e Stoudemire might finally get a chip (also, his hair is wild right now):

UPDATE: Looks like Amar’e got his chip:

— I’ll end with Frank Isola saying that Phil Jackson needs to follow the Warriors’ blueprint, AKA hit in the Draft every year for a few years and then make a big free agent splash.

...Duh doy.