http://www.gcobb.com/2010/09/18/the-sixers-in-middle-of-carmelo-anthony-sweepstakes/ A story I read on CBSSportsline.com the other day appears to be flying under the radar in the Delaware Valley and to be quite honest, I don’t understand why. For those that missed it, according to Ken Berger, the Philadelphia 76ers are rumored to be players in the Carmelo Anthony sweepstakes. Yes, you read that correctly. However their involvement, if any, is still semi-unclear. At first, Berger goes on talking about a possible three team deal for Anthony. New Jersey and Philadelphia are the two teams mentioned as possible players. Naturally, your first question would be “Who is getting Melo?” Well the answer to that question would be New Jersey. According to Berger’s story, Denver would ship Anthony to the Nets, putting him close to the New York market. New Jersey would then send the No. 3 overall pick in last year’s draft, Derrick Favors to Philadelphia and the Sixers would ship Andre Iguodala to Denver. Although the Sixers would lose out on Melo, they would get a rookie that has a lot of hype built around him. The move would also allow the Sixers to inch closer to exiting salary cap hell. Also, remember new team president Rod Thorn drafted Favors, so if any three way deal happens, he will most likely insist Favors be apart of the deal. However, Berger does go over another scenario that would eliminate the Nets and have Melo come to Philly. In order for the Sixers to be able to take on Melo’s salary, guys like Jason Kapono and Willie Green (both have expiring contracts) would most likely be dealt. Unfortunately, that is not good enough for a guy like Melo. So the Sixers would have to add a young player like Thaddeus Young and/or Andre Iguodala to the deal. If Denver does not want both Young and Iguodala, the Sixers could possibly entertain swapping one of them out and replacing them with No. 2 overall pick Evan Turner if it meant getting Anthony. Now to some, that may seem like a pretty steep price for one guy, but this isn’t your average guy. He is a bona fide top five player in the NBA and he is still in his prime.
