According to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News, Donnie Walsh did indeed turn down the Nuggets’ latest trade offer involving Carmelo Anthony. Isola has a “team source close to the negotiations” that is probably with the Knicks given Isola’s job covering the team.
The Nuggets, according to a source, are asking for three starters – including Danilo Gallinari and Raymond Felton – plus Eddy Curry’s expiring contract and at least one first-round pick. In that proposed deal, Anthony and veteran point guard Chauncey Billups would be coming to the Knicks.
The third starter could be Landry Fields, Wilson Chandler or even Timofey Mozgov, though it should be noted that the trade only works as it stands with Mozgov included. More salary (Al Harrington?) would be needed from Denver’s end to balance things out if Chandler or Fields were included. One would think that the Nuggets would want to include Harrington in any deal, but I can’t imagine the Knicks are eager to take him back.
I suspect the Knicks would be most willing to give up Chandler and/or Gallinari, since Carmelo would be replacing a lot of their minutes on the wing. At this point, it would be tougher to part ways with Fields given his excellent all-around play this season as a rookie and cult status amongst the Knicks faithful. Felton is an interesting inclusion seeing that the Nuggets already have a point guard in Ty Lawson that is capable of becoming a good starter, but Felton probably has more long-term value than Billups at this point, so why not?
The saga continues.
