Are Carmelo’s New York Days Numbered?

It appears the Knicks could be  a step closer to making a trade to deal one-time superstar Carmelo Anthony. That is if he's become so sick of his own GM's trash talk that he's willing to 'OK' a trade that would remove him from the stumbling franchise, along with the $22 million he's making this season, and $24.5 million he's slated to get next year.

'Melo still shows the ability to have big scoring nights - he scored 30 in Monday loss to the Hawks - but criticism of his apparent lack of effort on defense is being blamed for the team's struggles.

New York has lost 11 of the last 13 and a team that not-so-long-ago looked to be a playoff team (and nothing more) can't seem to put a solid effort forward for all four quarters. They've slipped to 18-24 and are on the outside the top-eight in the East.

Things could be coming apart internally following an article by Charlie Rosen - said to be close to Knicks GM Phil Jackson. In it, Rosen said 'Melo has outlived his usefulness in New York, doesn't play 'D', stymies the offense and should be dealt. It's perceived that Rosen's piece is an expression of Jackson's feelings and the 32-year-old Anthony is now calling on Knicks' brass to man-up and speak to him face-to-face. Rosen, for his part, wrote another article saying the opinions he expressed where his and his alone.

If this theme sounds familiar, Anthony's former head coach in Denver, George Karl, threw criticism at Anthony in his recent book, basically labeling 'Melo selfish and uninterested on the defensive end.

And, let's be honest, fans have complained for some time that their biggest star is the team's biggest hindrance to any offensive chemistry.

It's been reported both sides will meet, however, Carmelo's comments only indicated his willingness to have a discussion, not that there necessarily would be a meeting.

The Anthony-Jackson relationship has been poor with both sides occasionally trading shots in the media. It's thought that the former Syracuse talent would evoke his no-trade clause unless he was heading to play for a title with King James in Cleveland. However, Anthony is at least saying he's willing to talk about playing someplace else.