MELO’S AUDITION
Deal or no deal, LeBron only wants best for buddy Melo
LeBron James wasn’t lobbying for Carmelo Anthony on the eve of their Garden showdown, but he also left open the door for his longtime compadre, who may want greener pastures beyond Broadway.
Anthony has his first trade audition Saturday when the Knicks host the Cavaliers, who have been approached by Knicks president Phil Jackson about a potential trade involving Kevin Love.
The game kicks off a five-game homestand during which Anthony will have his second trade audition Wednesday when the Knicks host the Clippers, a team Jackson also has approached.
Would Anthony waive his no- trade clause to join forces with his banana boat buddies, James or Chris Paul in Los Angeles?
James said he would not reveal if they have spoken. Anthony remained curiously quiet Friday, not wanting to discuss his fourth-quarter benching against Brooklyn and uncertain future.
“I just want the best for my friend, no matter what it is,’’ James told reporters in Cleveland on Friday. “So if he’s there in New York or not. I just want the best for him, I want him to be happy. That’s all that matters. The game comes very easy to you when you’re happy about where you’re at. So if he’s happy in New York, maybe he wants to be elsewhere, I’m not sure. He’s done a lot for that franchise, did a lot for the Denver franchise and see what happens.”
Earlier this week, Anthony admitted to being torn, too. He wants to remain a Knick, partly because of his family, but he also doesn’t want to be where he’s not wanted. If Jackson and general manager Steve Mills want to blow it up and admit yet another failure to a summer retooling, Anthony said he would consider leaving.
By the Feb. 23 deadline, Jackson and Mills will have a stronger idea on whether this team deserves to be kept intact. At 22-29, they are in the playoff hunt in the awful East — two games in the loss column out of the eighth seed.
Courtney Lee, who signed a $50 million pact, came to win now and would hate to see management surrender.
“I signed here to be in a winning situation,’’ Lee said. “The reason why we signed here was to try to make the playoffs and we still have a great chance of doing that. It doesn’t matter what the record is, as long as we get there, it’s a new slate.
“If we get there, I like our chances,’’ Lee added. “Things are changing as far as execution and help on defensive end, guys knowing where to be.”
If this is Anthony’s final Garden homestand, it won’t be easy. The Cavaliers, Clippers and Spurs stand among the league’s elite.
Cleveland has won eight straight over the Knicks, including 2-0 this season. In the eight wins, they have outscored the Knicks by an average of 14.9 points.
The Knicks will need a big game from Anthony, on a torrid streak until his Brooklyn bust, when he got benched for the final 15 minutes and watched the young bench players pull out victory.
Derrick Rose said when he was with the Bulls and heard about trade reports last February, he also started to pick up his game.
“It makes you focus in and compete harder,’’ Rose said. “All I can do is be a teammate and be there for him and talk to him whenever I can, keep him levelheaded. He seems like he’s cool, handling it pretty good. He’s a vet. It’s just a distraction.
“He’s coming out and scoring 30 points in six, seven games. It shows he’s keyed in. We just have to find a way to win as a team.’’
Rose said he would consider it a “disappointment’’ if Anthony got traded.
Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek said he believes Anthony handled the benching well. Hornacek didn’t rule it out, but said he probably won’t do that to Anthony again. The circumstances aligned for Anthony’s first-ever fourth-quarter benching as a Knick.
“It’s always a dicey one,’’ Hornacek said. “If you lose the game: ‘Why the hell didn’t you put Melo in?’ Most of the time, we’ll go back to Melo.”