Carmelo Anthony will only waive his no-trade clause for the Rockets

Well, after another week when it appeared we may be close to a Carmelo Anthony trade, only to have it not materialize, things have slowed down a bit.

We know what the Rockets are thinking: get Carmelo, give up Ryan Anderson, likely to a third team, hopefully throw in draft picks and some other minor pieces, and then proceed trying to hunt down the Golden State Warriors out West.

We don’t really know what the Knicks are thinking, other than trying not to get torched by Rockets GM Daryl Morey. They were hoping to reincorporate ‘Melo once GM Scott Perry was hired, in the hopes of remaking the troubled relationship between star and front office, but it appears for now, at least from Anthony’s standpoint, that bridge has been burned. Though the Knicks certainly are trying.

But we do know what Anthony is thinking, and it appears to be: Houston or bust.

According to Mark Berman of the New York Post, Carmelo will now only waive his no-trade clause for the Rockets. Originally, Anthony was also willing to go to Cleveland, but with the recent developments there with Kyrie Irving, he’s changed his mind on going to the Cavaliers. Per Berman:

A stalemate has ensued as sources indicate Anthony only wishes to waive his no-trade clause to go to the Rockets. Not even Cleveland, which is in turmoil, is good enough for Anthony as the Cavaliers are dealing with Kyrie Irving’s trade demand.

The Knicks haven’t completely give up hope, however, as The Post is also reporting that the recent signing of point guard Ramon Sessions was done specifically with Anthony in mind. New Knicks management is holding out for the moment on moving Melo, with the hopes of keeping him around, or at the very least, regaining some of the leverage lost in these very public trade demands:

The Knicks’ management tandem of Steve Mills-Scott Perry claim it won’t trade Anthony to Houston unless it cobbles together a solid deal that makes sense for the Knicks’ future. Nothing has materialized.

In fact, a source told The Post the signing of veteran point guard Ramon Sessions partly was due to him connecting better with Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis than did Derrick Rose, who left for Cleveland via free agency.

So for now, at least, it appears we’re not any closer to a resolution in the Melo matter, but with Anthony stripping down the teams he’s willing to waive his no-trade clause for to just one — the Rockets — it looks like it’s Houston or bust for Carmelo.

Just in case you need clarification, “bust” is staying with the Knicks.