Carmelo Anthony will be opting out of the final year of his contract and testing free agency but before Knicks fans curse him to hell and demand a trade, the scoring forward says he’s willing to accept less money to re-sign with the Knicks if it helps the team attract big-name free agents.

Melo said that re-signing with the Knicks would be his “first priority.” and under the current rules, Anthony could sign for up to $129M over five seasons in his next contract but he suggested that’s not his goal.

“As far as the money, it don’t really matter to me,” he said. “If I go somewhere else, I get paid. If I stay in New York, I get paid. As far as the money goes, it’s not my concern. My concern is to be able to compete on a high level, a championship level, coming in this last stretch of my career. I want to compete at that level.”

By taking less money, Anthony could give the Knicks more cap space to pursue players who are expected to test free agency in the summer of 2015, like as Rajon Rondo and Kevin Love.