The trade deadline ended at 3 PM ET Thursday, but that doesn’t mean the news of just-completed trades is going to stop coming in. Here are a few deadline deals that broke just before or after the league cutoff.

Blazers acquire Gerald Wallace. (Ken Berger, CBSSports.com)
The Bobcats get Dante Cunningham, Joel Przybilla and two first round picks. Since Przybilla’s deal is expiring, this is a salary dump for Charlotte. They’ll come away with Cunningham and two first rounders out of the deal. Wallace can play either forward spot, so he could play alongside LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicolas Batum if the Blazers want to play small ball.

Nate Robinson and Kendrick Perkins to OKC for Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic. (Adrian Wojnarowski, Y! Sports)
Interesting trade for the Thunder, who are going to have trouble shooting the ball if they start Perkins, Serge Ibaka and Thabo Sefolosha. They’ll have plenty of size down low and appear to be gearing up for a potential matchup with the Lakers and/or Spurs. Perkins is widely regarded as one of the best defensive centers in the league and Ibaka is no slouch either. The C’s must feel like they have plenty of size with Shaq and Glen Davis, who usually finishes games for Doc Rivers. Green will back up Paul Pierce and/or Kevin Garnett. Krstic is a serviceable center as well, and there are rumors that Boston will be looking to add Troy Murphy if he clears waivers.

Aaron Brooks to Phoenix for Goran Dragic. (Marc Stein, ESPN)
Brooks was thought to be a cornerstone of Houston’s youth movement, but one temper tantrum and one suspension later and he’s on his way to the Suns for Dragic, who was thought to be the point guard of the future in Phoenix once Steve Nash moved on. But Dragic’s three-point shot has disappeared (28% this year after 39% last season) and his numbers are down as a result. If he gets back to form, the 24-year-old could be a steal — and the Rockets got a first round pick to boot.

Rockets send Shane Battier to Memphis for Hasheem Thabeet. (Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports)
The Rockets get another first round pick as part of this deal. Thabeet isn’t ready for prime time, but maybe the Rockets still see potential in him. Battier’s contract is expiring and he obviously wasn’t in Houston’s long-term plans so they got what they could for him. The first round pick should be useful, even if Thabeet is not.

In another trade that “almost-was,” O.J. Mayo was going to be moved to the Pacers for Josh McRoberts and a first round pick, but the NBA didn’t receive the fax in time, so the trade was nullified. Insert Michael Heisley joke here.

Just visited with Aaron Brooks. Said he’ll be out four to six weeks.

The Rockets are 1-5 and can ill-afford to lose Brooks for any length of time, though they have one of the best backup point guards in the league in Kyle Lowry.

Complicating matters, the Rockets play five of their next six (and 14-of-23) games on the road.

Houston is scoring well (112.0 ppg, second only to the Lakers), but they’re giving up the second-most points as well. Their FG% allowed (44%) isn’t bad, but the Rockets are 26th in the league in defensive rebounding, so teams are getting loads of extra possessions.

This year, I’m going to preview the NBA season by starting with the lowest of the low and working my way up to my Finals picks. If a franchise is a legitimate championship contender, I’ll focus on what stars have to line up for a title run. If a team is a playoff also-ran, I’ll identify the weaknesses that have to be shored up via trade, free agency or draft over the next couple of seasons to make it a contender. If a team is likely to miss the playoffs, I’ll take a look at the salary cap, and provide a blueprint for how the team should proceed in the near future to get back in the postseason.

#15: New York Knicks
The Knicks missed out on LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh this summer, but they did land Amare Stoudemire, and also acquired Raymond Felton to run the point. David Lee is gone, but New York did get a good young player in Anthony Randolph to take his place. In other words, this Knicks team is going to look a lot different than last year’s club, and probably for the better. Newcomers Ronny Turiaf, Kelenna Azubuike, Roger Mason, (promising) Russian center Timofey Mozgov along with Wilson Chandler and Toney Douglas will round out Mike D’Antoni’s rotation. Cap-wise, the Knicks are still in good shape. Eddy Curry’s $11 M expiring deal can be used as trade bait or the franchise can just let it come off the books, creating around $18 million in cap space next summer, which they could use to sign Carmelo Anthony if he hits free agency. The only big contract on the payroll is Stoudemire’s deal, and the Knicks really need him to stay healthy in order to get their money’s worth. This looks like a franchise on the rise, but they need to land one more star to threaten the upper echelon of the East.

#14: Atlanta Hawks
Entering this summer’s free agency period, no one thought that Joe Johnson was going to be the guy to sign the biggest contract, but that’s exactly what happened, and there’s a good chance that the Hawks come to regret the decision to offer him a max deal. This team has improved dramatically over the past few years, but doesn’t seem to be in any danger of making the Finals. The Hawks were pushed to seven games by an Andrew Bogut-less Bucks team. If that series proved anything, it’s that the Hawks are a long way from competing for an NBA title. Still, there’s enough talent here — Johnson, Al Horford, Josh Smith, Jamal Crawford, Mike Bibby — to keep the Hawks competitive, but at the very best, Atlanta is just treading water in a conference that got a lot tougher this summer. Financially, I wouldn’t say that the team is screwed, but it’s going to be very difficult to add any talent to the roster. They should be able to keep the Johnson-Smith-Horford core together, however, and that should guarantee 40+ wins for the next few years.

#13: Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks’ emergence as an Eastern Conference upstart was one of the better stories of the 2009-10 season. The rise was a confluence of events — namely Andrew Bogut’s development as one of the best two-way centers in the league, the electric play of rookie point guard Brandon Jennings, the savvy trade for underrated swingman John Salmons and Scott Skiles’ ability to get his players to work on the defensive end. This summer, the Bucks added Corey Maggette (a move that will actually save them money this season), Drew Gooden and Jon Brockman, who collectively should bolster the team’s frontcourt. There are two big questions heading into the season: 1) Is Andrew Bogut healthy enough to play at a high level? and 2) Will Scott Skiles’ disciplined play start to wear on his team? The answer to those questions will determine whether or not the young Bucks will finish as a Top 5 seed in the East or be battling for a playoff spot late in the season. From a payroll standpoint, Michael Redd’s bloated salary will finally come off the books next summer, which will give the Bucks about $10 million in cap space In the long run, John Hammond may come to regret giving long-term contracts to Salmons and Gooden, but in the short term, those players will help to make this club competitive. Fear the deer.

#12: Portland Trail Blazers
It seems like every season, the Blazers look like they’re on the verge of joining the West’s elite and every season, injuries take their toll. There’s no doubt that Portland’s roster is talented, but can Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden (or Marcus Camby) stay healthy throughout the year? Because you need to be on the court in order to play. Seriously. Another issue may be Rudy Fernandez, who thinks he should be getting starter’s minutes even though he plays the same position as the team’s best player. Newcomer Wes Matthews will bolster the Blazers’ rotation at the wing, especially if Fernandez gets his wish and is traded. Cap-wise, the Blazers won’t have any significant flexibility until the summer of 2012, when Camby’s deal comes off the books. Still, with Roy and Aldridge in tow, Portland should be an attractive landing spot for a top tier free agent. Unfortunately, the Blazers just don’t seem like they’re ever going to put it together, and by firing the architect that put this team together (Kevin Pritchard), it has put the franchise in flux.

#11: Houston Rockets
Looking for a darkhorse in the West? Look no further. If Yao Ming can stay healthy (and that’s a real big IF), the Rockets are primed for a great season. They have potent backcourt with Aaron Brooks and Kevin Martin, and a pair of do-the-dirty work forwards in Shane Battier and Luis Scola, who is coming off a terrific run at the 2010 FIBA World Championship. The bench is good too. The big question is whether or not Yao can enter the playoffs in good health. If he can, the Rockets will be a good bet to make a deep run. And Yao needs a good season since he’s entering the final year of his deal. He has spent the better part of the last few seasons injured, and we’re at the point where we’re wondering if a franchise can truly build around a player that is this injury-prone. With Yao, Battier and Jared Jeffries coming off the books next summer, the Rockets figure to have around $19 million in cap space, which puts the franchise in good position to move on if Yao’s feet continue to give him problems.

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Per the Houston Chronicle…

Yao will play no more than 24 minutes per game, Rockets vice president and athletic trainer Keith Jones said. There will be no exceptions. If Yao has played his 24 minutes and the Rockets have the ball and eight seconds on the clock to make up a one-point deficit, Yao will not play those eight seconds.

Yao’s playing time will not average 24 minutes; it will end there. If he plays 22 minutes in one game, he will not play 26 the next. For that matter, if he plays two minutes one game, he will not play 26 the next. When Yao reaches his 24 minutes, he will be through for that game.

The article goes on to suggest that things could change in the playoffs, but the Rockets are bound and determined to get their big man to April fully healthy.

After missing just two games in his first three seasons, Yao has missed 173 of the next 410 games over the following five seasons, or 42% of his team’s games. What good is a franchise center if the guy can’t make it through the season without some sort of season-ending ailment?

That’s why the Rockets are so intent on limiting his workload. They hope that by reducing his minutes throughout the season, it will enable him to be healthy enough in the postseason.

According to Marc Stein, the Nuggets are telling interested teams thanks but no thanks.

Yet sources tied to five potential Anthony suitors, reached in recent days by ESPN.com, all relayed the same story about the Nuggets’ response: They’re pretty much ending these conversations before they even start by saying that they don’t want to engage in Melo talks.

Ujiri’s Denver superiors instead want him to lead the club’s mountain climb of a bid to try to reconnect with the 26-year-old scoring machine before they even consider trading him, hoping that some sort of positive karma exists in the reunion of Ujiri, a former Nuggets scout, and Anthony, who both arrived in Denver in 2003 and spent several formative seasons together in the organization.

I explored the various trade scenarios last week, and the main issue is that whatever team that trades for Anthony will want a long term commitment. Carmelo wants the three-year extension, so an extend-and-trade is the best way to go for all parties involved. So why he technically doesn’t need to sign off on a new trade destination, the still-unsigned extension gives him the power to do exactly that.

Ujiri has been described as a very positive person, so he’s doing his due diligence here in the hopes of convince Anthony to stay while he tries to reshape the roster. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: If Carmelo starts the season as a Nugget, he’ll likely finish it as a Nugget. It will be very difficult to trade him in February if the Nuggets are in the middle of the playoff pack in the West. (Just look at what happened to the Raptors.)

With the news that the Nuggets’ latest meeting with Carmelo and his camp didn’t go that well, it’s time to start looking at Anthony’s short list of teams to see what they can offer in the way of trade.

Per Adrian Wojnarowski, the Nuggets are looking for “young players and draft picks,” so we’ll keep that in mind as we discuss the various trade scenarios.

That Wojnarowski piece also listed five teams as potential landing spots for Anthony: New Jersey, L.A. (Clippers), Houston, Golden State and Charlotte (due to Anthony’s shoe deal with Brand Jordan). Let’s fire up the Trade Machine and go team-by-team to see what they can offer. Keep in mind that it’s virtually impossible to get equal value for a disgruntled star, so most of these trades are going to look better from the point of view of the team receiving Anthony. That’s just the way it is.

New Jersey (soon to be Brooklyn) Nets
New Jersey has four young(ish) players that might appeal to the Nuggets: Brook Lopez, Derrick Favors, Terrence Williams and Devin Harris. I don’t see the Nuggets getting Lopez out of this deal, but one idea is a simple swap of Troy Murphy and Derrick Favors for Anthony, with one or two first round draft picks to sweeten the deal if necessary. This would leave the Nets very thin at power forward, but they’d get a Top 15 player to build around while retaining Harris, Williams and Lopez. The Nuggets would get a power forward with a ton of potential to form a nice one-two punch with their best young piece, Ty Lawson.

If the Nuggets aren’t sold on Lawson for some reason, they could ask for Harris, Williams and Kris Humphries (to even out the salaries). Harris, Favors and Humphries is another possibility. So is Harris, Favors and Williams, which looks like the best of the bunch. The Nuggets could hold onto Favors and Williams, and if they’re set with Lawson at point guard, move Harris in another trade.

Would the Nets give up Harris, Favors and Williams? They should. It’s not often that a player of Carmelo’s stature comes on the market while in his prime. Teams should do whatever they can to get him, and worry about fixing the roster later.

Los Angeles Clippers
Hmm. Maybe the Clips will get their star after all. If they do, they have Anthony’s wife, LaLa Vasquez, and her burgeoning ‘entertainment career’ to thank.

To make the numbers work, it appears that Chris Kaman would need to be involved in any trade for Anthony, unless the Nuggets were willing to take on Baron Davis (but he doesn’t exactly fit the ‘young player’ criteria). So how about Kaman, Eric Gordon and Al-Farouq Aminu? I’d be shocked if the Nuggets were able to wrest Blake Griffin away from the Clippers, so this may be the best they can do. L.A. could throw in a first round draft pick or two to get the Nuggets to bite. Denver could even throw in Chris Andersen if it wanted to dump more salary and give the Clips a center back in the deal.

Houston Rockets
The Rockets can offer a plethora of different proposals, and they are particularly attractive because they can include the Knicks’ first round draft picks over the next two seasons.

If Denver is in the market for a good young shooting guard, how about Kevin Martin, Jordan Hill and Chase Budinger (to clear out the logjam at small forward in Houston)? Throw in a first round pick or two and this is a pretty attractive offer. If the Nuggets prefer Patrick Patterson to Hill, he could be included along with Mike Harris to make a similar deal work. Before Nuggets fans scoff at this offer, it should be noted that Martin is just 27 and has scored 20+ points in each of the last four seasons.

Don’t want Martin? How about Budinger, Hill, Patterson, Jared Jeffries’ expiring deal and Aaron Brooks? There are four young players in that deal and the Rockets could add a draft pick or two to aid Denver in its rebuilding effort.

Golden State Warriors
I’m not sure what the Nuggets would want from the Warriors, but they’re not going to get Stephen Curry, so Denver fans should put that pipe dream to rest. Talent-wise, the best deal I can come up with is Monta Ellis and Andris Biedrins for Anthony and Chris Andersen. Ellis and Biedrins each still have four years on their deals, but they are 25 and 24 respectively, so they fit the Nuggets’ criteria. Salary-wise, this isn’t going to help Denver’s cap situation at all.

Other than maybe Ekpe Udoh and Brandan Wright, the only other trade assets the Warriors have are the expiring contracts of Dan Gazuric and Vladimir Radmonovic. Either of these guys could be packaged with Ellis or Biedrins if the Nuggets wanted to go that route.

Charlotte Bobcats
It’s strange to see Charlotte on this list, but apparently Carmelo’s shoe deal with Brand Jordan makes it possible. If I’m the Nuggets, I would require that Gerald Wallace be a part of any deal, so maybe an offer of Wallace, Gerald Henderson and D.J. Augustin might get it done. Again, a draft pick or two could be included.

Under this scenario, the Nuggets would get an All-Star (and a first team All-Defensive player) in return, though at 28, he might be a bit long in the tooth for Denver’s rebuilding project. Still, of all the trades described in this post, he is arguably the best player of the bunch.

Tyrus Thomas isn’t eligible to be traded until mid-December and it doesn’t look like the Nuggets are going to wait that long, so there isn’t much else on the Bobcats’ offer that would be of interest.

It’s not clear which of these deals are best for the Nuggets, as we’re not privy to their priorities. Is it important that they trade Carmelo out of the conference? When they say ‘young players’ are they referring to established up-and-comers (Aaron Brooks) or 19- or 20-year old draftees (Derrick Favors)? Are they sold on Lawson as their point guard of the future?

And what about the Knicks? I still think a trade that would send Danilo Gallinari, Anthony Randolph and Eddy Curry’s expiring contract to Denver for Carmelo would be a pretty good deal for both sides.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports has the details:

Denver was furnished with a short list of teams and told to get to work. Yes, this is how William Wesley and Leon Rose of CAA work now, thick with threats and ultimatums and a swagger suggesting that the sport belongs to them. After Anthony told owner-in-waiting Josh Kroenke that he still wanted out of Denver during a Sunday meeting, the Nuggets appear done trying to sell their All-Star forward on a contract extension.

This wasn’t a productive, nor particularly pleasant, meeting and multiple sources said it could turn out to be the point of no return for Anthony and the organization. Sources insist it’s no longer a matter of if the Nuggets trade Anthony, but when, where and for whom he’s traded for.

One thing I really like about Wojnarowski is how he infuses a little opinion, even if the story is more news than commentary.

So where might he land?

The Nuggets made it clear to teams they want young players and draft picks for Anthony, league executives said. The New Jersey Nets and Los Angeles Clippers have emerged as the two most probable destinations for Anthony because they have assets that appeal to Denver. The geography works for Anthony because of his wife LaLa Vazquez’s entertainment career.

Golden State and Houston are contenders, too. What’s more, the Charlotte Bobcats are a sleeper because of Anthony’s Brand Jordan shoe deal and the team’s ability to give the Nuggets a salary-dump proposal.

What about the Knicks?

With nothing to trade for Anthony, though, New York isn’t considered a strong contender in the eyes of Denver management.

Don’t tell that to a Knicks fan who recently commented on this post, saying that my idea to offer up Danilo Gallinari and Anthony Randolph was “absurd.” That just goes to show how differently two sides can view the same player(s). The Nuggets seem to view Gallinari and Randolph as ‘nothing,’ while that aforementioned Knicks fan thinks they are the second coming of Larry Bird and Dominique Wilkins.

Later today I’ll go team-by-team and come up with a few (objective) trade scenarios.