A Million Carmelo Anthony Rumors and No Conclusions

Settle in, folks, because this could take a while

Knicks fans exploded with glee early on Wednesday when Chris Sheridan of ESPN.com posted an article that had the Knicks making "significant progress" toward a trade for Carmelo Anthony

It didn't much matter that the significant progress didn't seem particularly significant -- basically, the Knicks are willing to trade a bunch of players to get 'Melo -- because everyone just focused on the outcome suggested by Sheridan. And there's more. The Post reports that 'Melo is talking to Spike Lee about how much he wants to be in New York, Spike's talking to the Knicks and everyone's hoping that the Knicks do the right thing and bring the forward to town post-haste.

Lost in the shuffle was the fact that there was no suggestion of an imminent trade or that things had even progressed to the point we were at when the Nets were supposedly on the verge of landing Anthony. 

Not that there was much time to bask in the glow of the Sheridan's hard work. David Aldridge of NBA.com said the report has "no legs" and Ken Berger of CBSSports.com maintains that the Knicks can't offer nearly as good a package as the Nets would be able to put on the table and that the Nuggets are willing to wait until they get what they want or have no chance of re-signing Anthony before pulling the trigger. Anthony, for his part, said that re-signing isn't off the table, although that might just be good public relations work because no one else seems to believe he'll remain in Denver.    

The most important report of all probably comes from Alan Hahn of Newsday. He only reports that the Nuggets and Knicks are talking, which doesn't sound like much but it is fairly significant progress. The Nuggets, either out of spite for Anthony's machinations or genuine dislike for what the Knicks could offer, had been turning up their noses at the Knicks for quite some time. Engaging them in talks is, at the very leasy, an indication that the Nugs know that they'll have to deal Anthony to avoid losing him with no compensation. If he really is going to only sign an extension in New York, push will come to shove and they'll have to figure out a way to get a deal done.

Actually, that last bit is probably the thing that's most important to keep in mind as this season plays out and the Anthony rumor mill continues to churn. None of these reports are untrue because they are all being fueled by sources with motivations to see their desired outcome. It's a business deal and all sides are going to dig in to negotiate the best terms possible for themselves.  

And, ultimately, that can be to the total benefit of the Knicks. Anthony holds all the cards. If he is determined to taste big city living, he will wind up here and the Knicks will give up whatever they give up to get him. Until that happens, we'll all just have to pass the time by watching the current players do their business when the season starts next Wednesday.  

Josh Alper is a writer living in New York City and is a contributor to FanHouse.com and ProFootballTalk.com in addition to his duties for NBCNewYork.com. You can follow him on Twitter.

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