NBA Trade Rumors: Carmelo Anthony Traded To New York Knicks, But at What Price?

Carmelo Anthony is finally a member of the New York Knicks, according to sources.

Anthony was traded to the Knicks for multiple players and draft picks Monday night, ending months of trade rumors surrounding the Denver Nugget's superstar forward.

Anthony will go to New York in exchange for Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton, Wilson Chandler, Timofey Mozgov, NY's 2014 first round pick, two second round picks of the Warriors (NY acquired these picks in a previous deal), and $3 million cash.

New York will also acquire Chauncey Billups, Shelden Williams, Anthony Carter, and Renaldo Balkman in the deal.

While the Knicks finally got their man, was the price to acquire Anthony too much in the end?

Yes, they grossly overpaid, and it's all because of Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov's clever managing of this lengthy process.

Prokhorov's offers to Denver for Melo have been far better than New York's offers until the tonight, which forced the Knicks to gradually improve their offer to Denver.

In the end, Denver will receive four young, talented players who have yet to hit their prime, and all of whom are relatively cheap in terms of salary.

The Nets are the reason NY overpaid for Melo, but it seems they are not yet done in making the Knicks' situation worse.

According to league sources, the Nets will attempt to trade for Danilo Gallinari and possibly Mozgov and Felton as well in exchange for first round picks, once these players are dealt from New York to Denver.

If that situation becomes reality, the Nets will have several of the Knicks young players when they move to Brooklyn in the 2012-13 season. The Nets will also have cap space in the coming years to sign superstar free agents to build a better, more complete roster than the Knicks.

In the present, the Knicks may not be a better team, but they'll be more exciting nonetheless.

However, the pressure for Anthony to perform, and perform to the highest level, will be immense.

Knicks fans expect championships from Anthony now that their team gave away the only talented, young players the team had to acquire him.

With Amare Stoudemire and Billups, Anthony will make the Knicks a tough team to beat, but they are not close to being a championship contender.

The Knicks still don't have any great defenders, Anthony and Stoudemire are not known for playing exceptional defense.

Boston, Miami, Orlando, and Chicago could all beat the Knicks handily in a seven-game series come playoff time.

While the Nets didn't get Anthony, they have still found a solution to improve their team, and worsen their soon to be New York City rivals.

So in the end, are the Nets the real winners of the Carmelo Anthony saga, even without acquiring him?

Yes, they won the battle by a landslide. Well played, Mikhail Prokhorov.