Amar'e Stoudemire to decide over All-Star break whether to ask Knicks for buyout

Amar'e Stoudemire's last days with the New York Knicks may be fast approaching. 

Stoudemire, in the final season of a five-year, $100-million deal, intends to use next week's All-Star break to make a decision about his future with the Knicks. One potential option he plans to consider is whether to ask the organization for a buyout. 

"It's not an easy decision to make," Stoudemire told Marc Spears of Yahoo Sports. "Over time, we will see how things pan out. You give yourself a break during the All-Star break. You think about it with your family. ... That will give me a good solid week on how to weigh out the rest of the season."

The 32-year-old, who's expected to return to the court Friday after missing four games with an ankle injury, is virtually untradable, which is why a buyout might make sense for both parties. 

Stoudemire is owed $23.4 million in the final year of his deal, an exorbitant salary likely impossible to move. 

The oft-injured power forward has been limited to 32 contests and is averaging 12.2 points and seven rebounds, while shooting 55.1 percent from the field in 24.9 minutes per game. 

He elaborated on a potential buyout: 

All possibilities at this point are still open. The door is still open for that. But at the same time, I am with the Knicks now. I got to stay optimistic about things and what we are doing here. I can't really focus on the future because it's not here.

We still have a couple weeks left before it's all said and done. It's a decision I have to make with my family to figure out the best scenario for the near future.

Stoudemire, who signed a max contract with the Knicks in 2010, did speak fondly of the organization and team owner James Dolan, while saying his heart is in New York. But a buyout would allow him to join a playoff contender as the Knicks plug through the final stretch of the most miserable season in franchise history. 

While Stoudemire could be on his way out, the Knicks are more concerned, according to Spears, about trying to come to a buyout agreement with Andrea Bargnani, who's owed $12 million in the final season of a five-year deal he signed with the Toronto Raptors in 2009. 

Bargnani has been a disaster since being traded to the Big Apple. He has been limited to two games, a year after missing 40 in his first season with the Knicks.