Anthony still wants to go to another direction
The Denver Nuggets made bold moves in their bid to persuade superstar Carmelo Anthony to stay, but the 26-year old forward remained firm in his trade request.
The 2003 third-overall pick still wants a trade out of Denver, but the Nuggets are still waiting for reasonable offer, which will give them enough talent to stay competitive next season.
The New Jersey Nets are very aggressive in their bid of acquiring the 6ft 8in forward, and sources said that Anthony is willing to sign a contract extension once he will be dealt
to the Nets. The Nets also have enough pieces on the table to strike a blockbuster deal before the upcoming NBA season. New Jersey is willing to offer 2010 third overall pick Derrick Favors, and Devin Harris, along with
multiple future picks.
The Nuggets will then utilize the $8.98 million contract of Harris in a deal that would give them a decent replacement for Anthony, and the Philadelphia 76ers will be the likely destination
of the cat-quick point guard. Philadelphia 76ers general manager Ed Stefanski, who had a great relationship with Nets team president Rod Thorn in New Jersey, will like complete the three-team deal by sending either Thaddeus Young or Andre Iguodala to Denver.
Anthony, who averaged 28.2 points and 8.5 rebounds per game last season, also expressed his intentions of joining forces with Derrick Rose and Carlos Boozer in Chicago, but the scenario is
highly unlikely since the Bulls are not willing to part ways with Joakim Noah.
On the other hand, Denver Nuggets head coach George Karl remains optimistic that the perennial all-star will still be in their fold next season. The veteran coach said that he hasn’t talked
to Anthony this summer, but he insisted that he will do everything to persuade Anthony to stay.
"To me, my job is to, anytime I talk to Melo is to convince him that we won 53 games last year and I think we're very capable of being a lot better than we were last year," said Karl, who
will be back on Denver's bench next season after battling neck and throat cancer this year.
The Denver Nuggets will have their media day on September 27, and Anthony is expected to attend and talk about all the hype surrounding him this summer.
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