Knicks Trade Rumors: Cavs Won't Give Up Kevin Love For Carmelo Anthony

The New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers continue to engage in trade discussions. The issue: Cleveland won’t give up Kevin Love for Carmelo Anthony.

The New York Knicks have engaged three teams about a potential Carmelo Anthony trade. All three teams are contenders that would give Anthony a chance to win a championship: the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Los Angeles Clippers.

New York and Cleveland continue to engage in trade discussions, but one common theme remains: the Cavaliers is unwilling to give up Kevin Love for Anthony.

Anthony is in the midst of a turnaround that includes the 45 points he scored against the Atlanta Hawks and the 26 he posted at the Washington Wizards. Unfortunately, New York is 21-29 and thus continues to weigh its long-term options.

Ramona Shelburne and Marc Stein of ESPN are reporting that the Cavaliers have interest in trading for Anthony, but refuse to part ways with Love.

The New York Knicks continue to pursue Kevin Love in advance of the Feb. 23 trade deadline despite the Cleveland Cavaliers’ unwillingness to part with the All-Star forward in a deal for Carmelo Anthony, according to league sources.

That’s surprising on a number of different levels.

Anthony has six All-NBA selections and nine All-Star Game appearances to two and four, respectively, by Love. Nevertheless, the Cavaliers are reportedly unwilling to trade the 28-year-old Love for the 32-year-old Anthony.

If these rumors prove true, it could be a sign that teams around the NBA don’t view Anthony in the way they once did.

It could also be a sign that the public fiasco that is Anthony and Phil Jackson’s relationship has damaged his trade value.

If teams believe that Jackson is willing to deal Anthony at any cost, they won’t give up much in a trade. If teams believe that Anthony will be unable to lead them to victory, then the same result would transpire.

Nevertheless, Anthony is still one of the best scorers in the NBA and has a Hall of Fame name and resume.

The question is: do the Knicks actually believe that trading Anthony for Love would be fair value?