On the basketball court this season, Carmelo Anthony failed to lead the New York Knicks to many victories.
Off the court, however, he just suffered his biggest loss.
According to TMZ sources, La La Anthony decided to leave her husband of seven years.
The All-Star power forward and television personality split up last week, with La La having already settled into her own new place in New York City.
Insiders confirm that the break-up is friendly and that Carmelo and La La were spotted together last week at their 10-year old son’s basketball game.
La La is close friends with Kim Kardashian and exchanged vows with Carmelo in July of 2010.
The high-scoring future Hall of Famer was traded from the Denver Nuggets to the less than a year later, with many believing he forced his way to The Big Apple because his wife wanted to further her own career in a major market.
But while Carmelo has made dozens of millions of dollars as the Knicks first option over the last several years, his team has missed the playoffs each of the last three seasons.
Moreover, Carmelo himself has been the subject of numerous trade rumors, especially over the course of the 2016-2017 season.
This chatter allegedly placed a strain on the couple’s marriage, likely because La La has no interest in leaving New York.
She doesn’t want to uproot child Kiyan from his school or his friends, either. Which is understandable.
The thing is, Carmelo has a no-trade clause. He has the power to remain in New York throughout the next two years of his current contract.
But the Knicks don’t want him on the team!
Team President Phil Jackson has hinted strongly for months that the squad would be better off trading Anthony, in order to build a younger club around Kristaps Porzingis.
During a press conference last week, Jackson stopped hinting… and starting outright saying of Carmelo:
“We have not been able to win with him on the court at this time.
“I think the direction of our team is that he is a player who would be better off somewhere else, using his talents where he can win or chase that championship.”
What if Carmelo wants to stick around?
Jackson says he told him: “We haven’t won here. You don’t want to end your career” with the label of a non-winner attached to your uniform.
Ouch, huh?
Very awkward, no?
The belief within NBA circles is that Anthony will agree to a trade at some point this summer, now that his relationship with the team has deteriorated to such an extent.
And so has his marriage, sadly.
Anthony averaged 22.4 points per game this season, along with 2.9 assists and 5.9 rebounds.
These numbers were also below his careers averages in those categories.