Brandon Jennings said the involvement of Carmelo Anthony in trade rumors in late January and February impacted the New York Knicks.

Phil Jackson discussed an Anthony trade with at least three teams.

"It definitely took a toll, I think, on the team. Because it wasn't even about basketball anymore, it was more about what was going on with Melo," Jennings said.

Jennings said it was "cool" playing with Anthony, but noted that Anthony had "a lot of pressure on him dealing with stuff with Phil."

"I think it was just a roller coaster, an emotional roller coaster for him this year with everything he had to deal with, which isn't fair," Jennings said. "For a player to wake up every day and you're hearing trade rumors and you might be gone and this and that. It was like a two-week span where everybody was hitting your phone, (reading reports) about Melo leaving."

Jennings was released by the Knicks shortly after the trade deadline.