INDIANAPOLIS — Carmelo Anthony sounded sad but tried to put on a happy face regarding the disaster that ends Tuesday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The arena is the site of the Knicks’ last playoff game, three long years ago. This year’s Knicks were out of the playoff race by late February and will miss the postseason for a third straight year.
The Knicks, at 32-49, will look to avoid a 50-loss season against the Pacers, and Anthony is considering sitting out. Somehow this ending has a more depressing feel than the 17-65 mark of last season.
At least then the Knicks looked forward to a likely top-four lottery pick and were one of the league leaders in cap room. This summer embattled team president Phil Jackson is missing a first-round pick and second-round pick, and he doesn’t have an abundant amount of cap space to brag about.
Jackson also no longer has to tout a young head coach with potential, as he once had with Derek Fisher. If he decides to bring Kurt Rambis back, it would be an unfavorable decision with the fan base.
“There’s uncertainties right now,’’ Anthony said. “That’s what guys get paid the big bucks for, and everybody has to put their heads together and continue moving this ship forward.”
Anthony has been increasingly positive in the season’s final week, trying to paint the picture he is still all-in. He bit on a question from MSG Network asking how excited he was for the future, given the fast finish by rookie point guard Jerian Grant, who will start his sixth straight game Tuesday, and, of course, the overall excellence of phenom Kristaps Porzingis.
Porzingis’ rookie year didn’t end as smoothly as Grant’s, as he’ll close out the season missing the final seven games with a slow-healing shoulder strain.
“The upside of the young guys, Jerian showed the last three weeks of the season what he’s capable of, the type of player he can be,’’ Anthony said. “He’s got a lot of upside. Of course, everyone’s seen KP’s upside. So the young talent we have on this team, the sky’s the limit if they keep working hard.”
Bigger than hiring the next coach is the next backcourt. It needs a major upgrade after having Jose Calderon and Arron Affalo start much of the season. The talent disparity was so evident Sunday in watching free-agent-to-be shooting guard DeMar DeRozan destroy the Knicks while their 2015 free-agent signee Afflalo proved no match.
The Knicks, third-worst team in the East, need a better Anthony and a better backcourt. Anthony’s “clutch’’ shooting stats remained a mess for a third straight season. His passing improved, but he lost his explosiveness coming off knee surgery. The Knicks also need to upgrade the bench through free agency.
Currently they have $18 million of cap space. That should rise with the expectation of Afflalo opting out, which would give them $25 million to spend on a max deal. If point guard Tony Wroten looks the part, they probably will waive Calderon, too, under a stretch provision that could save them $4 million more in cap space. Derrick Williams also may opt out, knowing the Lakers have $50 million of cap room.
Even if the Knicks can’t acquire their prized free agents, the notion that most teams are under the cap will make it easier to make a trade for backcourt help. Aggregate salaries don’t have to match.
As much as Rambis and Anthony stressed continuity because of the time it takes to master the triangle, seven players from their roster could be goners: Afflalo, Williams and free agents Lance Thomas, Langston Galloway, Kevin Seraphin, Lou Amundson and Cleanthony Early. Thomas is a priority to re-sign for the bench.
After the Garden finale, Anthony saluted “the true fans who stuck with us the last couple of seasons.
“I don’t think it’s time to give up on us just yet,’’ Anthony said.