Sports · Basketball · 5 hrs ago
Carmelo Anthony backs Knicks’ pause in contract talks
Carmelo Anthony said the New York Knicks were right to halt contract talks for now.
He believes the team should focus on basketball instead.
The source does not say whose contract was being discussed.
It gives no details about the talks or why they were paused.
The Knicks are a basketball team based in New York.
Anthony is a former Knicks player.
The pause means contract discussions are not the team’s immediate focus, according to Anthony.
The source does not say when talks might resume or what happens next.
Carmelo Anthony said the New York Knicks were right to pause contract talks with some players and focus on basketball.
The Knicks said last week they would resume discussions later in the season as they turn their attention to defending their NBA championship.
Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart are eligible for contract extensions, but talks had made little progress.
Towns said the Knicks’ announcement that negotiations were being halted “was news to me.”
Anthony said he believed the players and management could work things out respectfully.
- Who
- Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks. Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart are the players eligible for extensions.
- What
- Anthony backed the Knicks’ decision to pause contract negotiations and focus on basketball.
- When
- Anthony spoke Monday, October 12, 2026. The Knicks said last week they were pausing discussions.
- Where
- Anthony spoke at NBC Sports studios in Stamford, Connecticut.
- Why
- The Knicks said they wanted to devote their attention to defending their NBA championship.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The Knicks said they were pausing contract discussions until later in the season.
Anthony said the Knicks made the right decision to halt talks and focus on basketball.
- Extension-eligible players
- Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart
- Towns' potential extension
- Four years, $276 million
- Towns' salary this season
- $57 million
- Hart's salary this season
- $21 million
- Knicks' title focus
- Defending their NBA championship
What people are saying
I think it was big for them to stop the conversations, and just, we'll get to that. We'll get to that at the end of the season.
was news to me
But right now, let the be all, be the be all, which is basketball. Let's go defend this championship.
Sources
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