NBA Trade Rumors: Why Carmelo Anthony Could End Up in the Lone Star State

The NBA trade deadline is fast approaching and the rumor mill is operating at break-neck speed.

Carmelo Anthony is obviously the one player at the center of these rumors and talk.

Anthony is currently averaging 23.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game for a Denver Nuggets team that is sitting in sixth place in the Western Conference with a 29-20 record.

Speculation is 'Melo may not end the season in the Mile High City and may be on the move sooner rather than later. Anthony's suitors have included the New York Knicks, New Jersey Nets, Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks.

So with that being said, who is really serious about acquiring Anthony, and what would it take for Denver to part ways with him?

Clearly the Knicks want to see Anthony playing inside Madison Square Garden and are anxious to make a deal. The problem is the Knicks don’t have the personnel to put together a package Denver is truly interested in. The Nuggets want to receive one or two truly promising young talents in order to let go of Anthony, and the Knicks don’t have enough players to tickle Denver’s buying bone.

New Jersey, on the other hand, has rookie Derrick Favors, a player Denver was very intrigued by.

For those of you who don’t know, Favors is a 6'9" power forward from Georgia Tech and was the third overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. Favors is only averaging 6.6 points per game right now, but he has a very high ceiling and is held in high regard. Denver and New Jersey came excruciatingly close to wrapping up a trade involving Favors and Anthony (the exact details weren’t revealed), but ultimately the Nets didn’t want to let go of their promising young power forward, even if it was for 'Melo.

Now the focus on Anthony has shifted from the East Coast to the Southwest, as Denver and Houston are reportedly interested in making a trade deadline deal for him. Dallas is a legitimate playoff team at 33-15, and while Houston is struggling at 23-28, things could change awfully fast if they acquire Anthony.

The big snag in all this talk though is who could the Rockets or Mavericks offer Denver to entice them to let go of their prized bargaining chip?

Dallas has big-time talents such as Caron Butler, Jason Kidd and Dirk Nowitzki, but all three of those players are at least 30 years old. Denver is specifically looking for one or two young impact players they can build around after Anthony leaves, and I’m not sure Dallas has that.

Houston, on the other hand, has young talent in the form of Ishmael Smith, Patrick Patterson and Jordan Hill, but I’m not sure if those are the type of players Denver would be willing to part with Anthony for. It’s possible Houston could throw together a large-scale package deal where they offer up all they can for Anthony. Then the questions become, what is enough for Denver, and how much is Houston willing to give up for one player?

The problem involving a potential Carmelo Anthony trade is a simple one, and it’s that Denver has a very clear idea of what they want.  They won’t accept anything less for their star player’s services. Obviously many teams want Anthony on their rosters, but none have been able to make a strong enough pitch to Denver (besides possibly New Jersey).

We will have to wait and see if Houston, Dallas or another team can make Denver executives an offer they can’t refuse.