Carmelo Anthony Trade Rumors: 10 Surprise Teams He Could Be Traded To
It's a well-known fact that Carmelo Anthony wants to play for an East Coast team.
What no one seems to be completely sure of is whether Anthony would be willing to go the New Jersey Nets if he can't have his dream pairing with the New York Knicks.
But what about another team that isn't the Denver Nuggets?
Would Anthony be willing to relocate if it meant playing for a winner?
Given all the rumors and stories, it seems pretty clear that Anthony wants to be in New York, with New Jersey (soon to be Brooklyn) as his second option.
Yet, if there's one thing we know about sports, it's never say never.
Here are 10 surprise teams to which Anthony could be traded.
10. New Orleans Hornets
1 of 10
The Trade: Carmelo Anthony to the New Orleans Hornets for Trevor Ariza, Marcus Thornton, Marcus Banks and two future first-round draft choices.
The trade would be complicated because a bunch of the Hornets players can't be moved in a trade with another player, so I'd be lying if I said I had the exact details figured out.
But if these two teams could somehow make this happen, the Nuggets would get a solid wing player/defender in Ariza, a guy with a lot of potential as a sixth man in Thornton, an expiring contract in Banks and two first-round selections.
The Hornets, meanwhile, would have a pretty loaded team with Anthony, Chris Paul, Emeka Okafor and David West.
They'd also have a reason to stay in New Orleans.
9. Golden State Warriors
2 of 10
The Trade: Carmelo Anthony to the Golden State Warriors for Monta Ellis, Ekpe Udoh and a future first-round draft choice.
Anthony is a scorer first and foremost, and so is Monta Ellis.
Though Ellis has yet to show he can be consistent on the defensive end, and he can be erratic at times, he's a good two-guard who packs one heck of a scoring punch.
With Ellis coming to Denver along with Udoh and a future first-round choice, the Nuggets would have some good young talent coming in to their organization as well.
As for the Warriors, they'd have a very solid trio with Anthony, Stephen Curry and David Lee.
8. Indiana Pacers
3 of 10
The Trade: The Indiana Pacers trade Danny Granger, Mike Dunleavy and a 2011 first-round draft pick to the Denver Nuggets for Carmelo Anthony.
Would you be surprised to learn that Granger is actually more than a year older than Anthony?
I sure was.
Say I'm smoking the reefer, but this trade seems to work for both squads.
Granger's production (21.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists) is only slightly behind that of Anthony (23.1 points, 8.1 rebounds and three assists), while Dunleavy's got a nice $10.5 million expiring contract, and the draft pick brings added value for the Nuggets.
Though Anthony doesn't want to go here and Indiana's never been linked to him, this move could be one of the rare times when both teams benefit.
7. Charlotte Bobcats
4 of 10
The Trade: The Charlotte Bobcats trade Gerald Wallace, Nazr Mohammed, Tyrus Thomas and two first-round picks (2011 and 2012) to the Denver Nuggets for Al Harrington and Carmelo Anthony.
The Nuggets have reportedly been looking to include Harrington in any Carmelo deal.
Well, Charlotte might be the place to go.
In this deal, Denver gets a decent replacement for Anthony (Wallace), an expiring contract (Mohammed), an athletic forward (Thomas) and two building blocks for the future.
The Bobcats have been so bad this year that they'll likely get a high-draft pick in 2011, which means that Denver would probably get a top-tier talent as well.
The main caveat to this deal, however, would be Denver's willingness (or unwillingness) to take on Thomas, who still has five years left on his contract.
6. Portland Trail Blazers
5 of 10
The Trade: The Denver Nuggets trade Carmelo Anthony to the Portland Trail Blazers for Nicholas Batum, Rudy Fernandez, Marcus Camby and a first-round pick.
Here's the skinny on this trade: Camby has two years remaining on a pricey contract ($11.8 million per season) while Batum and Fernandez both have two years remaining on their contracts as well, but for less than $2 million annually.
All three of these players have been linked to potential trades, and so has Anthony.
At this point, Anthony is obviously better than all three players.
But Camby can still contribute on defense and on the glass. Batum could develop into a very good player, and Fernandez can be a deadly shooter when his head's on straight.
Both teams would get what they want out of this deal—Denver with young talent, and Portland with another superstar.
5. Philadelphia 76ers
6 of 10
The Trade: The Philadelphia 76ers trade Andre Iguodala, Thaddeus Young and a first-round pick to the Denver Nuggets.
Giving up both Iguodala and Young might not be something that appeals to Philadelphia, but it might be worth doing anyway.
Young is in the final year of his contract and could bolt for another team after the season, and Iguodala's been rumored to be traded for months now.
In the short term, this trade probably doesn't help the 76ers right away, but it could start the rebuilding process in Philadelphia.
Even if Anthony chooses not to re-sign with the team—which he wouldn't—the Sixers would save a ton of money and could build around their younger talent, like Evan Turner (who's struggled, yes) and Jrue Holiday.
4. Los Angeles Clippers
7 of 10
The Trade: The Los Angeles Clippers trade Eric Gordon, Al-Farouq Aminu, Chris Kaman and a first-round pick to the Denver Nuggets for Carmelo Anthony.
The obvious problem in this trade is the center logjam this would create in Denver, with both Kaman and Nene in Denver.
Yeah, I can't really get around that one.
But this trade would give the Nuggets a young star to replace Anthony (Gordon), an up-and-coming player (Aminu), a guy with just two years left on his contract (Kaman) and some future help (draft pick).
Though one could argue that the Clippers would be giving up too much, they'd form a pretty ridiculous trio with Baron Davis, Anthony and Blake Griffin, while also still having some cap room for more signings.
This scenario might have a lot of "ifs," but the Clippers would be a whole lot of fun to watch.
3. Chicago Bulls
8 of 10
The Trade: The Chicago Bulls trade Luol Deng, Taj Gibson (or James Johnson), Omer Asik and a future first-round pick for Carmelo Anthony.
Given the way the Bulls have been playing, trading for Anthony makes about as much sense as anything David Kahn's done for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Chicago is clicking on all cylinders right now, having won 10 of 13 games and only losing five times since Dec. 3.
The Bulls however, have been linked to Anthony in the past, who would undoubtedly be an upgrade over Deng at the small forward position.
The main questions in this deal—or one similar to it—would be how much young talent Chicago would be willing to part with and whether a draft pick would even yield a quality player for Denver (considering how good Chicago could be after this trade).
Also, you have to wonder whether or not Denver would want to include Al Harrington in a deal like this to shed some money from their books.
2. Houston Rockets
9 of 10
The Trade: The Houston Rockets trade Shane Battier, Kevin Martin, Chase Budinger and a first-round draft pick to the Denver Nuggets for Al Harrington and Carmelo Anthony.
So, what's going on here?
Well, a rumored Anthony-for-Martin trade has been around—however slim the actual chances of it happening are—and both teams could make out nicely here.
Though Anthony can't be replaced, Martin could take over as Denver's primary scorer, while Battier would provide a solid veteran presence to go along with his expiring contract.
Chase Budinger gives the Nuggets some needed depth, and the draft pick could be decent if the Rockets miss the playoffs.
Of course, Houston would also have a nice corps with Anthony, Harringon, Kyle Lowry and Luis Scola and youngsters like Courtney Lee, Aaron Brooks and Jordan Hill.
1. Dallas Mavericks
10 of 10
The Trade: The Dallas Mavericks trade DeShawn Stevenson, Caron Butler, Rodrige Beaubois and two future first-round picks to the Denver Nuggets for Carmelo Anthony.
As of this writing, the Mavericks have lost a staggering six straight games.
They need to do something immediately to stop the bleeding, even if that jeopardizes how this team might perform down the road.
By sending away Stevenson (expiring contract and not a huge contributor) and Butler (injured and expiring contract), Dallas would get rid of two guys who will probably be gone next year anyway.
The loss of Beaubois and the draft picks hurt the team's future, but the addition of Anthony would give Dallas one of the league's best starting lineups.
Knowing the way Mark Cuban is, it wouldn't be surprising to see him get in the mix to shock the world and pull off a trade for Anthony.
