Carmelo Anthony says he never received a text message from Amare Stoudemire telling him he wants Anthony to play alongside him in New York.
“I’ve read that, that he supposedly texted me,” Anthony said after scoring 37 points for Denver in a 115-99 loss to the New Jersey Nets. “I didn’t get it. I didn’t get that text.”
Anthony’s comment refuted a report by Yahoo! Sports from mid-January that the Knicks All-Star forward had reached out to Anthony via text message after hearing Anthony express doubts that the Knicks even wanted him. But Anthony limited his comments Monday night to whether a text message was sent and/or received, and he did not address whether he had spoken with any members of the Knicks.
New York has continued to pursue a trade for Anthony, knowing they are Anthony’s preferred destination, but neither Anthony nor Denver coach George Karl would assign a probability percentage regarding where they expect the four-time All-Star to be playing on Feb. 25 — the day after the NBA trade deadline.
Monday night’s loss ended a 3-2 Eastern road swing for the Nuggets, dropping their record to 28-20. They remain in playoff position in the Western Conference, and both Anthony and coach George Karl spoke of the possibility that Anthony may end up finishing the season in Denver before re-assessing his options.
“I have always felt from the way beginning of the season that the chance of that happening was far greater than all you all thought — of being with our team the whole year,” Karl said. “I just felt that way from the first day of training camp, from September, I’ve always felt that way. I’m trying to be prepared for anything, but if that happens we can get excited about being a very, very good team.”
The Nuggets have been exploring trade options because they fear losing Anthony with nothing in return if he opts out of his contract after this season and becomes an unrestricted free agent. But nobody in the NBA knows what the free agency rules will be when a new collective bargaining agreement is in place, and Anthony could be risking several million dollars if he indeed opts out of the $18 million he is due to receive next year and refuses to sign the nearly $65 million, three-year extension that would keep him under contract through the 2014-15 season.
“The CBA is in the back of my mind, but as far as being a free agent to play this out, if that’s what it’s going to take, then so be it. I’m with that,” Anthony said. “If it’s playing this year out and then going back to the drawing table, sitting down with Denver and trying to figure it out, or if I basically move on, I’m willing to do that.
“If I sit here and say I’m willing to lose 15 or 20 million dollars, I’d be lying to you,” Anthony said. “But at the same time this has never been about money. In my career so far I think I’ve made enough money. Now I’m focused on trying to win a championship. That’s the only thing that’s on my plate and on my mind right now.”
Information from Espn.com contributed to this report.
