Former Phoenix Suns All-Star Amare Stoudemire has agreed to join the New York Knicks. Stoudemire will sign for 5-years with a salary totaling $100 million dollars.The Suns half heartedly tried to retain Stoudemire, offering him a 5-year deal worth $71 million dollars. The offer was full of incentives and the last two seasons were not guaranteed.
The Suns signed free agent Hakim Warrick and re-signed Channing Frye, ending the Amare Stoudemire era in Arizona. After Phoenix moved on Amare wasted no time in joining the Knicks.
Stoudemire posted the following message on Twitter:
I want to say thanks to all my SUNS Fans. Thanks to my PHX SUNS teammates, an the Coaches. I love you guys, sorry It didn't work out. Gone!
Stoudemire spent all of his first eight seasons with the Phoenix Suns. The former five-time All-Star played in 52 playoff games and was the 2003 Rookie of the Year.
Now it's his job to turn the Knicks around and help may be on the way. The Knicks have gutted their roster in hopes of signing LeBron James. James met with the Cavaliers, Bulls, Heat, Clippers, Nets, and Knicks last week and the Knicks were the only team to receive a second meeting with James' team.
LeBron has been surprisingly quiet since the start of free agency so no one knows for sure which way he's leaning. A duo of Amare and LeBron would give fans in the Big Apple something they haven't had in a long time--a winning team.
Info from NBA Examiner was also used in this report.
