Why Should the Nuggets Rush to Trade Melo?

You hear it on the message boards, you read in the news and you hear analysis’s like Charles Barkley say it – Trade Carmelo Anthony before you lose him for nothing.

Well the question is how much better is Danilo Gallinari and Eddy Curry’s expiring contract than nothing, especially if it means hindering the Denver Nuggets one final run?

That is the predicament that the Nuggets front office is facing as Anthony and his teammates lay it on the floor night in and night out.

And while it appears to be obvious that Melo wants out of Denver there really shouldn’t be a hurry to seek a deal for him, especially if the Knicks and the Bulls are the only option as sources continue to say.

Knicks fans believe the Nuggets should just accept their team’s offer, because that is the best the Nuggets can get. But the bottom line is the offer isn’t going away and one thing that everybody is overlooking is Anthony is an expiring contract and is also a fan attraction, which partly the reason why the Nuggets aren’t in a rush to deal him.

Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post wrote an interesting article discussing how much impact Anthony has had on the Nuggets tickets. He points out that on average with Melo the Nuggets are attracting nearly 100,000 more fans a season.

That is one reason why teams like Charlotte, Philadelphia and Washington would at least offer something to try and snag the superstar. And if there isn’t a quality offer now or closer to trade dealine, why rush to trade him? Especially considering that there is no guarantee that there will be an NBA season next year and knowing that salaries will more than likely be less. Lets say the Nuggets finish the season with Anthony on the team and lose him they will cut nearly $50 million from their books and will be a player on the free agent market, which is entirely different scenario than both Cleveland, Toronto and Phoenix.

Now put yourself in Stan Kroenke’s shoes, would you accept an offer of Gallinari, Anthony Randolph and Toney Douglas for Melo (knowing that is the only offer) and take a hit in the box office or would you hold on to Melo and lose him for nothing, especially knowing you have money to spend next season or the year after that.