Amar'e minicamp for Knicks comes undone

There will be no reunion at Camp Amar'e.

Amar'e Stoudemire on Sunday decided against hosting a minicamp for his Knicks teammates at the IMG Training Facility in Bradenton, Fla. as a preparatory workout to training camp, which is scheduled to open Dec. 9.

According to multiple sources, after Stoudemire reached out to his teammates, two of the most important players -- Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups -- were not in favor of the idea. They instead wanted to hold workouts in New York so players could get settled in for the suddenly impending NBA season.

"There's no time," one source said of the camp, which Stoudemire hoped to begin as early as Thursday. The plan was to use IMG, which would provide gym space, a weight room and a fitness center. Stoudemire would have personally paid for meals and even a place to stay for his teammates. All they would have needed to do was get there.

Stoudemire, who has fully recovered from a pulled back muscle that hindered him in last season's playoffs, still will be at IMG along with Knicks first- round pick Iman Shumpert and Shawne Williams, an unrestricted free agent.

Anthony was supposed to be a headliner in the planned "Homecoming Tour" with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul, which included a Dec. 10 stop at the Izod Center, but that has been canceled because of the pending agreement to end the lockout.

Plans are being discussed among the other players -- such as Anthony, who lives in Manhattan -- to find a gym in New York until they are allowed back in the MSG Training Center. Players are not permitted to use team facilities until the lockout is officially lifted, which won't happen until a deal between the NBA owners and players is finalized. That could take another week.

Stoudemire thought it was important to get his teammates together early, especially with a short training camp and after spending only two months together late last season after the Anthony trade. Stoudemire had been talking about this minicamp since August but held off on it until a new collective-bargaining agreement was close.

The lockout-shortened season will be tough on the Knicks, who might need a few weeks to get reacquainted. Mike D'Antoni, who is in the final year of his contract, once again has to coach on the fly without a full training camp and very little practice time.

The 66-game schedule, which the Knicks will open Christmas Day against the Celtics, is expected to include at least one, and as many as three, back-to-back-to-back scenarios, according to the NBA.

Teams will play 48 games in-conference and 18 out-of-conference, which means the Knicks will make a few trips to the West Coast. They will face three Western Conference teams twice and the other 12 will be split: six at home, six on the road.

Within conference, they will play six teams the usual four times each in the season, with three games against the other eight.

It is uncertain when the NBA will release this revised schedule, though it is possible an official agreement on a new CBA will need to be reached first. Tickets then will go on sale immediately.

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