Knicks are progressing as if Carmelo Anthony will still be there, because they have to

Carmelo Anthony will remain a New York Knick at least through Monday’s media day and Tuesday’s training camp opener. That’s what team president Steve Mills and general manager Scott Perry hammered home during a pre-training camp press conference on Friday, where the duo of Knicks front office executives admitted they couldn’t find a trade for their All-Star forward that was fair for all sides involved.

“At the end of the day, what we set out [to do] was if there was something there that made sense both for him and the Knicks organization, then we would strongly consider it,” Perry said during the press conference that aired on Facebook Live. “Obviously we’re still here today and that did not happen as of yet.”

Anthony, a 33-year-old 10-time All-Star and former scoring champion, was expected to be traded to either the Rockets or Trail Blazers ahead of training camp after a massive falling out between he and Knicks management — largely run by Phil Jackson at the time — decimated his relationship with the franchise.

Anthony’s preferred destination was Houston, according to reports, but the Rockets reportedly could not find a third team willing to take on Ryan Anderson’s contract of three years worth $60 million. The Trail Blazers could have put together a more promising package of young players and draft picks, but Anthony holds one of the NBA’s three no-trade clauses and has not yet waived it for a trade to Portland.

Friday’s press conference doesn’t mean the Knicks won’t actually trade Anthony before media day or training camp. It could be one last shot at getting the most value in return from another team before settling for a deal they have in place. It could also be a message to Melo: We’re not trading you to Houston, so either waive your no-trade clause and take a trade elsewhere or stick around for the looming media circus — your choice.

Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum have actively recruited Anthony this summer, with Lillard making another pitch on a popular hip-hop podcast as recently as Wednesday. If Melo really wants out, he could waive his no-trade clause and head to Portland, which has several young players, including Maurice Harkless, Evan Turner, Zach Collins and Caleb Swanigan, as well as their own draft picks to bargain with. That still might not be good enough of a return for a perennial All-Star widely considered one of the world’s most lethal offensive talents.

If the Knicks do go through training camp and preseason and enter the regular season with Anthony on the roster — and starting, as Jeff Hornacek anticipates — it goes against everything the front office had preached during the summer.

New York had been all-in on a youth movement, with the front office writing a blog post detailing a future revolving around Kristaps Porzingis, Willy Hernangomez, Tim Hardaway Jr., and rookie point guard Frank Ntilikina. But if Anthony’s in orange and blue for training camp, Hornacek said the all-world scorer’s role won’t change from previous seasons.

“We’re gonna implement certain plays, certain defensive schemes that he’s gonna be asked to do,” he said, “but if you don’t think I’m not gonna start him, you’re crazy. He’s a great player, he still is, and he’s gonna add a lot to our team for us, assuming he’s back.”