In Phil Jackson’s candid press conference, he confirmed that the Knicks will likely trade Carmelo Anthony this offseason.

Jackson’s exact quote was, “I think the direction with our team is that he would be better off somewhere else.” At the end of the day, it is Carmelo Anthony’s decision because of his no-trade clause but it would be pretty awkward if he stayed at this point. Melo said yesterday that he is open to the idea of a trade. His stats were down across the board this year and if he is traded to a contender, he may not be the top scoring option anymore. He should fall down draft boards next year to a mid-round guy.

Jackson also mentioned he doesn’t believe Kristaps Porzingis is ready to take on a leadership role at 21 years old although he is most likely the Knicks number one scoring option going forward. He was also impressed with his exit interview with Derrick Rose and liked the idea of Rose “redeeming” himself and could see a role for him next year. He also mentioned that although there was some disconnect between players and coaches this year, he is comfortable keeping Jeff Hornacek as the head coach.