Nuggets’ Anthony wants to stay elevated
By Chris Tomasson 
| July 10, 2009 | 10:00 AM
Carmelo Anthony would like to stay in Denver if he can work out an extension with the Nuggets. (Newscom photo)
The Nuggets forward, who can’t become a free agent until 2011 at the earliest, becomes eligible to sign a contract extension Monday, the three-year anniversary of when he signed his ongoing deal.
“I want to stay here long term,’’ Anthony said in an interview with the Rocky Mountain Independent. “Yeah, I mean, if they presented me (this summer with a contract extension), I would consider that.’’
Indications, though, are the Nuggets, in these uncertain economic times and with Anthony two years away from possible free agency, likely would wait before considering a contract extension offer. Even Anthony said he’s “pretty sure they ain’t going to come to me this summer,’’ but also that he’s “pretty sure they will look at it next summer.’’
Anthony, 25, signed a five-year, $79 million extension three years ago that kicked in at the start of the 2007-08 season. Anthony, who will make $15.78 million next season and $17.15 million in 2010-11, can opt out of the final year of his contract, which would pay $18.52 million in 2011-12. But his opt-out summer of 2011 would become moot if he signs an extension before then.
Whenever negotiations start, Anthony will be doing it with a new agent. He dropped BDA Sports recently in favor of Creative Artists Agencies, where the head of basketball representation is Leon Rose. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because Anthony and Cleveland star LeBron James now have the same agent.
“(Rose is) going to be the guy, and CAA is the agency,’’ Anthony said. “It was just time to change, to go in a different direction. Those guys (Anthony worked with Bill Duffy and Calvin Andrews at BDA Sports) understood my decision. … It’s on a bigger scale. It’s not just basketball. There’s a lot of other stuff with film (Anthony was executive producer of the 2008 documentary Tyson on boxer Mike Tyson), everything I’m trying to do.’’
Speaking of Anthony and James now sharing an agent, some think Anthony’s recent postseason success is finally getting him back into the same conversation with James and Miami star Dwyane Wade, fellow members of the 2003 draft class.
Wade won a title in 2006 and James led the Cavaliers to the 2007 NBA Finals. Until last spring, Anthony had lost five straight first-round playoff series. But the Nuggets beat New Orleans 4-1 in the first round and Dallas 4-1 in a Western Conference semifinal before falling to the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers 4-2 in the hard-fought West final.
“I think winning is what separated all of us,’’ Anthony said of he, James and Wade. “At first, it was all three of us, and we were all on the same page. D. Wade won a championship. He took it to another level. LeBron got to the Finals one time, and that took him to another level. I think everybody was waiting to see when was I going to blossom? What was I going to do? I think this year started everything and put everything in perspective.’’
Anthony averaged 27.2 points in the postseason, playing some of the best ball of his life. Nuggets coach George Karl said he believes winning is what has elevated Anthony’s NBA status.
“The basketball world doesn’t respect statistics,’’ Karl said of Anthony, whose scoring average dropped during the regular season to 22.8 from 25.7, although he was regarded as a better all-around player. “It’s the playoffs, and the recognition of delivering ultra success is the key. … I think Melo now knows he wants to come back and be a little more of a leader, a little more of a guy that directs the team by example and by attitude.’’
Karl expects to see a more rested Anthony in training camp this fall. This marks the first summer since 2005 that Anthony hasn’t played with USA Basketball, having competed in the 2006 World Championships, a 2007 Olympic qualifier and winning a gold medal at last summer’s Olympics in Beijing.
“I don’t really know what to do with myself right now,’’ cracked the 6-foot-8 Anthony, who said the 236 pounds he now weighs is close to his season-ending weight and he wants to be a few pounds lighter by training camp. “I took a month off to rest my body. Before, I had to get right back into the gym to train for the U.S. team.’’
Before resuming workouts in early July, Anthony enjoyed some time off, including playing host to a basketball camp in Malaga, Spain. He then returned to Denver for the July 6-8 Camp Melo, his annual gathering at Gold Crown Field House in Lakewood.
If there’s any doubt about Anthony’s popularity, camp youngsters chanted enthusiastically, “Melo, Melo, Melo’’ before he came over to address them.
There was one camper who held a special place for Anthony. Joshua Herrman, 17, underwent a heart transplant June 24 at the Denver-area Children’s Hospital. Herrman, who is from Wichita, Kan., had moved to Aurora’s Ronald McDonald House in February as he awaited a transplant after finding out on his 17th birthday — Nov. 17, 2008 — that he had restrictive cardiomyopathy, a condition in which the heart is restricted from stretching and filling properly with blood.
In May, Herrman, an avid basketball player and fan, wrote a letter to the Nuggets saying the Ronald McDonald House had nothing but a toy hoop for small kids. He wanted to know if the team might be able to donate a real basketball hoop.
Officials at the Pepsi Center complied, and the Ronald McDonald House now has a new basket compete with a glass backboard. And Anthony invited Herrman to his camp, although he wasn’t yet medically cleared to participate fully.
“It was great,’’ Herrman said of the experience. “It was awesome. (Anthony) said thanks for coming.’’
After chatting with Herrman, Anthony had a photo taken with him.
“It was cool,’’ Anthony said. “I wanted to bring some special people to the camp. And, when I heard about his story, I wanted him to come here.’’
It was the fifth Camp Melo in the Denver area. The way he’s thinking about the Nuggets right now, Anthony sure hopes there will be a lot more.
camp melo, carmelo anthony, children's hospital, denver nuggets, ronald mcdonald house
