What To Make of the Carmelo Anthony Trade Rumours

Carmelo Anthony could turn the Nets
into instant contenders.

This article is by Brenan S., a devoted Lakers & Raptors fan and a BTTN correspondent.

If you’re a Nuggets fan, you’ll feel that you’re losing two of your best players—Melo and Billups. If you’re a Pistons fan, you’ll be sad to hear that you’re letting go of a Piston that made a name for himself in Detroit—Rip Hamilton.

And if you’re a Nets fan, you probably have gotten used to the crazy antics of majority owner Mikhail Prokhorov. After all, the man did promise a championship team within five years. At 6 ft. 8 inches and a net worth $13.4 billion, fans could even expect Prokhorov to join the starting line-up himself if worst comes to worst.

                For those NBA fans who are unaware of the most recent Melo trade rumour, it’s a dazzling and altogether humongous three team swap between the Pistons, the Nets, and of course, the Nuggets. Here’s the trade in a nutshell, one that the Nets were close to completing Sunday evening, but now seems much more complicated (it’s estimated that more than 15 players could be involved).

-Denver Nuggets:

                -Trading to: New Jersey: Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Shelden Williams, Terrico White

                -Acquiring from: New Jersey: Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, Anthony Morrow, Stephen Graham, Quinton Ross and Ben Uzoh, along with two first round draft picks

                -Key Notes: The Nets are trading away one of their best players, a multitude of guards, a rookie forward and two draft picks, an awful lot for three players. Is it really worth it for the Nuggets to trade two of their best players for one solid guard and a bunch of ‘carry-ons’?

-Detroit Pistons:

                -Trading to: New Jersey: Rip Hamilton

                -Acquiring: Johan Petro, Troy Murphy

                -Key Notes: Major savings for Detroit: Hamilton has over a year and more than $20 Million left on his contract; Troy Murphy comes with an expiring $12 million contract; Pistons don’t want Petro but  may have to take him; Ben Gordon could finally be put into the starting line-up slot.

-New Jersey Nets

                -Trading to: Denver Nuggets: Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, Anthony Morrow, Stephen Graham, Quinton Ross and Ben Uzoh, along with two first round draft picks

                -Trading to: Detroit Pistons: Johan Petro, Troy Murphy

                -Acquiring from: Detroit Pistons: Rip Hamilton

                -Acquiring from: Denver Nuggets: Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Shelden Williams, Terrico White

The Nets were close to landing Melo in the preseason through a four team deal including Utah and Charlotte, but talks fell through. Recently, with Detroit in the picture, the Nets were close to completing the deal Sunday evening, but now have been left with Melo’s intention of not heading to New Jersey anytime soon.

Should the trade go through, fans would see a reunification of former Detroit teammates Hamilton and Billups. Billups was traded for former Nugget now Turkish star Allen Iverson. Melo has recently expressed remorse that Billups, who wishes to retire in his hometown of Denver, has been brought into the talks as well.

Melo has the potential to become a free agent in the summer of 2011 and has refused to sign the contract extension offered to him by the Nuggets last summer.

The bitter irony Detroit faces is that they could have had the trio of Hamilton, Billups, and Anthony in 2003 with the No. 2 draft pick by picking Anthony instead of Darko Milicic. While Darko is getting some quality playing time in Minnesota and could still blossom into a solid starter, there’s no question that the Pistons would rather have chosen Anthony (not to mention Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and Chris Kaman were also available at the time).

Melo has come under harsh criticism since his horrendous performance against New Orleans on Sunday night, where he recorded only 8 points in a 96-87 loss. Anthony has led the Nuggets to a playoffs appearance for each of the first seven seasons of his NBA career and assures fans he didn’t blow the game on purpose. As many say, it was just a “bad” game.

At the moment, it seems that the Orlando Magic have pulled off the best trade of the season, with Miami closing out the offseason with the free-agent signing award. As the talks continue, all the former Syracuse University star could say was “It’s all in the air.”

So, we’ll just have to sit back, stay tuned and wait for the dust to settle.

Raptors Report Week 10: Raps Linked To Many Trade Rumours

This article is by BTTN basketball correspondent Sachin Arora. It is also available at Sportshaze.com, where Sachin is on staff as a journalist.

Would Carmelo Antony re-sign with
Toronto if traded their?

The Toronto Raptors have finally recorded a week where they have won more than a game.

The inconsistent play is still the main problem with the team, but there has been many positive signs. This team is still somehow in the playoff race, despite having a 13-24 record. Sitting two games back of Philadelphia 76ers, look for the Raptors to improve as the season goes on and challenge Philly for that final playoff spot.

On another note, Bryan Colangelo has been active in many trades, and Colangelo has seemed to poke his head into every trade rumor. There have been reports that the Toronto Raptors are trying to acquire Johny Flynn, Omri Cassapi, and have even made an offer for Carmelo Anthony.

How truthful this information is, that's beyond me, but you can bet that Colangelo is working to swing a deal and use that acquired TPE before it expires at the trade deadline. Peja Stojakovic and Reggie Evans are expiring contracts, and could be valuable trading pieces to teams looking to sign major free agents.

Back to this week though, Toronto had mixed results, which is no surprise.

It seems like it is an infinite loop that I'm writing every week, that the team has shown its potential, but only in short bursts, and can never play well throughout the whole game.

Record: 2-2

Performance on a scale of 1-10: 6.5

Here is a recap of the four games:

Raptors @ Bulls, L 91-111

Positives

Andrea Bargnani showed the difference he can make in the offense, pacing the Raptors with 23 points. DeMarDeRozan continued his solid play and chipped in with 18. The Raptors offense didn't look bad as a whole without their catalyst Jose Calderon, so that wasn't the problem.

Negatives

For starters, the defense was atrocious, and the offense wasn't good enough to make up for it. The Raps were eaten alive on the boards, as was the case in the first matchup against the Bulls as well. The game was never really close, and the Raptors were simply outmatched by an elite team.

Raptors @ Cleveland, W 120-105

Positives

This was a really gritty win by the team, playing on a back to back while shorthanded, the team overcame an early deficit to blow out the Cavs. Andrea Bargnani was great once again and Julian Wright showed the energy he can bring to the team when given a chance. Jose Calderon had his best game of the season finishing with 20 points and 17 assists.

Negatives

The Cavs are the worst team in the league for a reason, and the Raptors shouldn't have been down in the first place.

Raptors @ Celtics, L 102-122

Positives

DeMar DeRozan continued his strong play, and the Raptors were pretty good offensively, putting up 102 points versus one of the NBA's best defenses.

Negatives

This was another learning game for the young Raptors squad, and they learned what happens if you fall behind early against one of the NBA's elite teams. Boston really killed the Raptors offensively as Toronto couldn't seem to make a stop. The Raps also got killed on the rebounds, and this was another result of just being outmatched by the defending Eastern Conference champs.

Raptors vs Kings, W 118-112

Positives

DeMar DeRozan and Andrea Bargnani both exploded for 28 and 30 points respectively. The Raptors shot the ball very well and played a well-rounded offensive game.

Negatives

The fact that this Kings team gave the Raptors a run for their money without their best player Tyreke Evans is a bit discouraging. The Raps defense was once again very mediocre, and this kind of play isn't going to get it done against teams other than the league's worst.

Overall, this was a week where the Raptors won the games they were supposed to, and lost the games they were supposed to.

Ask Sachin

"The trade deadline is approaching quickly. Toronto has many expiring contracts. Reggie Evans, Calderon, Stojakovic etc. and a lot of good young talent. Are we going to trade any of our players (in your opinion) to try to get a hold of some higher caliber talent? If so, who are you eyeing? Who should we be eyeing? Should we even be trading anyone? And most importantly, should we or should we not trade Jose Calderon?" - Kevin (Toronto, ON)

I've mentioned above that the Raptors are active in many trade rumors, and I do believe that a move will be made. A consistent swingman is something that the Raptors could use to play alongside DeRozan. In regards to trading Calderon, I think it's best we keep him. The Raptors aren't exactly short of cap space, especially with all the expiring contracts, and Jose is a great mentor for maturing point guard Jerryd Bayless.

If you want to have your question answered in the next Raptors Report, please leave a comment below. Thanks.