Update #5 - Still no deal, and Denver is still holding out that the Bulls will offer Joakim Noah or the Clippers Blake Griffin, but Ken Berger of CBS, who is suddenly getting out ahead on this story is reporting that 'Melo is threatening to hold out of the Nuggets' media day today if something doesn't get finalized. Meanwhile, Nets minority owner Jay-Z, reportedly had a sitdown with World Wide Wes in order to pave Anthony's arrival to New Jersey.

UPDATE #4 - Now, apparently Carmelo is having second thoughts on a deal to the Nets. According to Yahoo's Adrian Wojonarowski, despite new ownership and a new arena, 'Melo is getting spooked by conversations with former Nets players who say the franchise is in the shadow of the Knicks. The Knicks are trying to swoop in in the 11th hour here and make a deal happen around Danilo Galinari, Anthony Randolph, Toney Douglas and somebody's draft picks, Woj reports.

UPDATE #3 - Apparently the Nuggets are delaying the deal, and making sure they have the best possible offer according to Sam Amick of AOL Fanhouse:

But according to two sources close to the situation, the Nuggets -- who stand to acquire Nets rookie forward Derrick Favors, Utah forwardAndrei Kirilenko and two first-round draft picks from New Jersey in the deal -- are compromising the trade with their slow-moving ways.

UPDATE #2 - Stefan Bondy's source says that Carmelo has agreed to the deal:

Reliable source: Carmelo has approved the deal to the Nets.

Also, it could be done as soon as tomorrow:

The deal could go down as early as tomorrow.

UPDATE #1 - According to Stein, the deal either gets done Monday, or doesn't happen at all:

Sources said negotiations were expected to continue through the weekend, with a target of completing the deal by Monday.

"It either happens by Monday," one source said, "or the deal falls apart."

One source close to Anthony told ESPN.com on Friday afternoon that the 26-year-old -- whose top two preferred destinations are New York and Chicago -- is warming to the idea of joining the Nets, whose planned move to Brooklyn in two years under Russian billionaire owner Mikhail Prokhorov is a strong lure, in addition the presence of center Brook Lopez, one of the league's top young big men.

Hey guys, just got back from Media Day, and will have something up on that shortly.  Obviously you guys have heard the rumors by now, so we aren't breaking any news or anything, but apparently there are rumors of a four team deal that would land Carmelo with the Nets, Devin Harris with the Bobcats, and Derrick Favors to the Nuggets.  From the looks of it (and I could be mistaken) but the Nets don't seem to be the team giving up picks here.

A couple thoughts.  First, at Media Day Avery talked about Terrence playing both the SG and PG positions this year.  This was obviously before the rumors broke (I didn't hear about this until I was in my car on my way home), but this tells you that the front office and the coaching staff would be comfortable with Farmar starting and Williams backing him up.

Also, we have been given the rare opportunity of seeing two proposed deals come out in the media.  The first was Favors, picks, and a mess of expiring contracts and this newest one is Devin and Favors.  Both net the same result, Carmelo Anthony.  Now, I have no idea who shot down the first deal and who is really pushing for this second one, but it does seem that the Nets favor their picks and cap space more that Devin Harris at that point (again, I could be way off here).

This is your open thread guys, and you can talk about the rumors here all weekend.  We will update it here if we hear of any other rumors, but unless something definite goes down, we aren't going to dedicate a new post to it.  So get your Carmelo talk in here, and be on the lookout for some media day stuff coming up shortly.

Sebastian Pruiti

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When talking about China with the media, Brook Lopez got asked about comic books.  He used the chance to drop some knowledge:

This is why I love Brook.  Well, that and his ability to drop 20 and 10 whenever he wants (hopefully it will be just about every game next year).

Sebastian Pruiti

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At Media Day on Friday coach Avery Johnson gave the media some thoughts on who the starters may be and what players will be playing where this season:

Obviously things could change if a certain player comes to New Jersey (but even if Carmelo comes, he is a big three himself), but the theme is still the same.  Avery Johnson wants this Nets team to be big at every position.  On Friday, I showed you that the Nets' goal on defense is to hold teams to just 44% shooting next year, and it seems that he wants to do it with length/size on the perimeter to bother shots.  Not only does Avery Johnson succeed in getting size on the outside by playing two guys who can play both the 3 and the 4 (Travis Outlaw and Damion James) exclusively at the three.  But also, this decision allows for Terrence Williams to play shooting guard primarily, where his size can bother opposing shooting guards when on the defensive end.

I really like this decision by Coach Johnson.  When you think about the league's premier scorers, most of them come from the Small Forward or Shooting Guard spots.  Throwing size at them will work at stopping these scorers (or at least slowing them down.  Also, it isn't like the Nets are giving up speed at these position when they are increasing size.  Guys like Terrence Williams, Travis Outlaw, and Damion James are more than athletic enough to stay in front of the players they are defending.

Sebastian Pruiti

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It has been my experience that when a new coaching staff takes over a team, they like to change everything, and that's a given.  However, one of the smaller changes that usually goes unnoticed are the signs around the practice facility.  When Kiki took over for Lawrence Frank it happened, and it seems to happen anytime a new staff takes over.  Each coach has their own message, style, and system and you can tell a lot by what type of messages and signs they plaster the practice facility with.  It may seem cheesy, but the coaches (and some of the players) really love this stuff.

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Sebastian Pruiti

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Dear Melo,

May I call you, Melo? I know it's a bit presumptuous to do so, but considering the speculation and various trade scenarios out there on the internets, it's appropriate. Personally it goes against my "Benny Hill Assume" rule, but we'll go with it anyway.

I'm certain you've noticed the attention put forth on your alleged desire to leave the Denver Nuggets, and unless John Cusack and Cameron Diaz found a gateway to "being" you, no one can say for certain what you want. But it's been written that you want to play for that team across the Hudson River, the New York Knicks, or barring that, the Chicago Bulls.
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Dennis Velasco

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There seems to be a groundswell of support to the idea that if the Nets were to acquire Carmelo Anthony, it should not come at the cost of Derrick Favors. Demonstrating that the Nuggets may be asking for a bit too much in their trade talk, NetsDaily has posted a fantastic breakdown of what a number of "superstar" players have yielded in trades in recent years.

In each of the cases below, good young players or draft picks went in the other direction but with few exceptions, those good young players were not top picks still on their rookie contracts.  In fact, not one top five pick still on his rookie contract was traded away by any of these teams. (The then-Seattle Sonics received the #5 pick in the deal for Ray Allen, but that was a draft day deal of a pick, which the Sonics used to make their own choice, not someone the Celtics had invested in.)

Mark Ginocchio

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Tomorrow afternoon is the Nets' annual media day (though it wasn't held in its full glory last year), and I will be attending.  If you got any questions you think I should ask when I am there, leave them in the comments or send me an e-mail.  I will have content from Media Day up tomorrow afternoon and probably throughout the weekend, so look for that.

Sebastian Pruiti

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I have been purposely trying to avoid talking about Carmelo Anthony as these rumors have been developing over the past couple of weeks.  Not because I am getting tired of the talk and the rumors (though as we move into the second week of being "front runners" it is starting to get tiresome), just because I don't know what side of the argument I fall on.  With details of the Nets' offer now in the media, I decided to put down my thoughts on a deal that I am still unsure about (I was going to do a post on how Troy Murphy will be used in the Nets' offense, but we might be jumping the gun there...).

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Sebastian Pruiti

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So chatter and rumor are ramping up around Carmelo Anthony so naturally, we're getting lots of conflicting reports about what's going to happen. It feels like the LeBron James situation all over again, which means Melo will probably end up in Miami. I kid ... but who knows anymore. Anyway, some quick bullet-points.

• Chris Broussard says the Nets were trying all day Wednesday to get a third team involved though the rumored Favors/Murphy/Humphries/Picks for Melo swap seems to be off the table.
• Adrian Wojnarowski says the Nets want Melo but aren't desperate for him, and are quite high on Derrick Favors.
• Fred Kerber quotes a rival executive who thinks the Nets have the best shot to land Melo. Kinda old news, but it's a Kerber source which are generally pretty good.
• Meanwhile, Avery Johnson likes Derrick Favors. Like really, really likes him. He compares him to Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan here.

Mark Ginocchio

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By: Evan Kaplan

What started out as a pipedream for Nets fans is now looking like a realistic possibility. Everyone has heard the Carmelo Anthony rumors heat up over the past 48 hours, with many sources around the NBA reporting that the Nets have the most attractive package to offer to Denver. It has been reported by multiple outlets that the Nets would deal lottery pick Derrick Favors, Troy Murphy, Kris Humphries and a future first round pick for ‘Melo. With the framework of a possible deal in place, we at NetsAreScorching felt it was a good time to look at how Anthony would fit in on both sides of the ball in New Jersey.

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Sebastian Pruiti

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After being declared "frontrunners" for Carmelo Anthony, it appears that expectations for a deal are now being tempered. Fred Kerber is reporting that no deal is imminent, and similar to other reports, the Nets are not going to make a deal without the guarantee of a contract extension from Anthony, who seems more interested in playing for the Knicks  than signing a contract with the Nets:

With Anthony able to be a free agent after the season, the Nets simply are not going to rent a player for a huge price tag. If it ever gets to free agency, the Knicks will stand as good a chance as any of landing him.

Mark Ginocchio

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Welcome to part III in our "Breaking Down the Schedule" series. After Sebastian predicted the Nets to go 9-11 in their first 20 games, Mark then predicted an 8-12 stretch for the Nets, which means after 40 games we at NAS have the Nets at 17-23. Let's see how the Nets might do from games 41-60 in the schedule this year.

This stretch of games is assuming we have the roster we have now, with no major deals being made or injuries occurring. (Re: January 31st could end up looking very different when all is said and done.)

January 17th: @ Golden State

The Nets end their four-game west coast trip with an easy afternoon game against Golden State in Anthony Morrow's first game back against his former team. Whether or not he or Terrence Williams is starting, Golden State doesn't have the defensive chops to keep up with the balanced attack New Jersey can throw at them. Stephen Curry might score 30+, but the Nets win a shootout. 18-23

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Devin Kharpertian

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