The Chicago Bulls are hanging around in the eastern conference without Derrick Rose and heading into next summer they may have some big moves to make and after the trade of Luol Deng, New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony could be a target if he opts out of his contract this summer and new reports say that the Bulls are more likely to sign him than the Los Angeles Lakers.
Anthony is widely expected to opt out of his contract this summer and while he may stay with the Knicks in New York, numerous reports have come out over the season that say he could sign with Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers or LA Clippers, with the Lakers looking like an early favorite. But according to Yahoo Sports and writer Adrian Wojnarowski, the Chicago Bulls and not the Lakers are the team that Anthony is "leaning" towards if he opts out of his contract, feeling that the Bulls are more championship ready than the Lakers.
The report from Yahoo writes that Anthony at one point looked like there was no way that he could leave New York, but the way things have gone this season that has become a more realistic possibility. Woj spoke to a source close to Anthony that said that he never thought Melo could leave the city after signing his deal there, but now that things have been up in the air regarding what the team will be doing and how they have played this season has greatly changed things and he added that Chicago was a more likely possibility now than Los Angeles.
No matter what the Knicks say or do heading into the summer, Anthony opting out of his contract is a nightmare scenario and they are genuinely worried that he will leave for LA or Chicago. The Bulls will be in a tough spot with Derrick Rose coming back and Carlos Boozer on the books and expiring the following year. The Lakers will have cap space to spend even with Kobe Bryant's contract, but they also will be looking to target Kevin Love the following summer when he is a free agent and that could change how the team approaches things as well. Anthony scored 62 points in the last game for the Knicks and the Bulls come into their game on Monday with a 22-21 record and they are now second in the central division.