Another day, another false story surrounding Jennifer Aniston. The rumor mill was working overtime yesterday with claims that the actress was adopting, but there is no truth to the reports, according to Gossip Cop.
Stories started popping up yesterday with reports that Aniston had visited an orphanage in Tijuana and decided to adopt a baby.
Details about a $250,000 "gender-neutral" nursery in the actress's home started to come out as well, including the name of a celebrity nanny who the actress had reportedly hired. Courteney Cox's former nanny, Marva Soogrim, was reported to be Aniston's new nanny.
A rep from the actress, however, was quick to kill the rumors, telling Gossip Cop that the story was "fabricated."
When she's not batting down rumors surrounding her personal life, Aniston is busying working on her movie career and gracing magazine covers.
She was recently on the cover of Allure, creating headlines earlier this month when she admitted to the magazine that she was not a fan of her iconic "Rachel" haircut from the '90s.
"How do I say this? I think it was the ugliest haircut I've ever seen," she said.
Showing posts with label Rumors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rumors. Show all posts
Friday, January 28, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Hilary Duff Shoots Down Pregnancy Rumors
Hilary Duff is NOT pregnant despite a report in Star Magazine claiming the actress was expecting.
Duff, 23, took to her official Twitter feed to inform fans about the misinformation, as well as to take the fake news in stride. She tweeted, "Wow what a way to wake up and find you're pregs! It's just a rumor guys. Not true. But thanks for all the good wishes! Lol."
Earlier, a discredited source exclusively told Star that the former Disney star and her pro-hockey player husband, Mike Comrie, are expecting their first child.
According to the source, who is said to be a close friend of the couple, Duff and Comrie "weren't actively trying to conceive but agreed that if it happened, it happened. She is about 7 weeks along already, but she and Mike wanted to keep the news to themselves and their families during this first trimester."
Duff married the Pittsburgh Penguins center in California last August, and has been very candid about wanting to start a family. Appearing to confirm this, the unnamed source added that Duff and Comrie are "ecstatic" that she is pregnant.
Duff, 23, took to her official Twitter feed to inform fans about the misinformation, as well as to take the fake news in stride. She tweeted, "Wow what a way to wake up and find you're pregs! It's just a rumor guys. Not true. But thanks for all the good wishes! Lol."
Earlier, a discredited source exclusively told Star that the former Disney star and her pro-hockey player husband, Mike Comrie, are expecting their first child.
According to the source, who is said to be a close friend of the couple, Duff and Comrie "weren't actively trying to conceive but agreed that if it happened, it happened. She is about 7 weeks along already, but she and Mike wanted to keep the news to themselves and their families during this first trimester."
Duff married the Pittsburgh Penguins center in California last August, and has been very candid about wanting to start a family. Appearing to confirm this, the unnamed source added that Duff and Comrie are "ecstatic" that she is pregnant.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Screenwriter Explains ‘Modern Family’ Casting Rumors
Lisa Kudrow and Conan O’Brien’s right hand man Andy Richter were not necessarily on the wish list for the “Modern Family” cast during its pilot days, according to a TV writer/producer.
Earlier this week, “Weeds” writer Stephen Falk posted a one sheet on his Tumblr acount, showing a very different breakdown of the families that make up the hit ABC comedy, including a picture of the “Friends” star in the role of Claire Dunphy, former “Coach” star Craig T. Nelson in the role of Jay Pritchett, Richter as Mitchell and the now 35-year-old Sarah Gilbert, formerly of “Roseanne,” in the 13-year-old shoes of Dunphy daughter Alex.
On Wednesday, however, the writer explained the list wasn’t a breakdown of whom the show went after, or even necessarily wanted, for those parts.
“The ‘Modern Family’ document I posted yesterday was an attachment to the widely-distributed 2008 pilot script and was simply character shorthand (for executives to quickly ‘see’ what the writers were going for) and not a ‘wishlist,’” Falk wrote. “[‘Modern Family’ producers] Steve Levitan and Chris Lloyd did not, as far as I know, wish for Sara Gilbert to get in a time machine and become 13 again.”
“I only posted the one-sheet because I thought the document held informative value and insight into a common writer practice,” he continued. “(The character sheets for the pilot I’m currently writing have photos of Matthew McConaughey and Artie Lange pasted onto them; I do not intend to try to actually cast Matthew McConaughey and Artie Lange.)”
As for that “Modern Family” sheet that was attached to the pilot, there were two faces that, in fact, did make it on air – Sofia Vergara who plays Gloria, and Ty Burrell, who plays Phil Dunphy.
Earlier this week, “Weeds” writer Stephen Falk posted a one sheet on his Tumblr acount, showing a very different breakdown of the families that make up the hit ABC comedy, including a picture of the “Friends” star in the role of Claire Dunphy, former “Coach” star Craig T. Nelson in the role of Jay Pritchett, Richter as Mitchell and the now 35-year-old Sarah Gilbert, formerly of “Roseanne,” in the 13-year-old shoes of Dunphy daughter Alex.
On Wednesday, however, the writer explained the list wasn’t a breakdown of whom the show went after, or even necessarily wanted, for those parts.
“The ‘Modern Family’ document I posted yesterday was an attachment to the widely-distributed 2008 pilot script and was simply character shorthand (for executives to quickly ‘see’ what the writers were going for) and not a ‘wishlist,’” Falk wrote. “[‘Modern Family’ producers] Steve Levitan and Chris Lloyd did not, as far as I know, wish for Sara Gilbert to get in a time machine and become 13 again.”
“I only posted the one-sheet because I thought the document held informative value and insight into a common writer practice,” he continued. “(The character sheets for the pilot I’m currently writing have photos of Matthew McConaughey and Artie Lange pasted onto them; I do not intend to try to actually cast Matthew McConaughey and Artie Lange.)”
As for that “Modern Family” sheet that was attached to the pilot, there were two faces that, in fact, did make it on air – Sofia Vergara who plays Gloria, and Ty Burrell, who plays Phil Dunphy.
Carmelo Anthony Trade Rumors: Should New Jersey Nets Give Up and Go Draft Route?
Carmelo Anthony, the Denver Nuggets star forward, is going to be playing somewhere else next year.
There's no question about that. If he wanted to stay in Denver he would have signed their extension offer long ago and put all this drama to rest.
It's been well known for months now that Anthony's preferred destination would be the New York Knicks, but the New Jersey Nets have been trying hard to get their hands on the superstar.
The problem is that Anthony doesn't seem all that enthused about playing for New Jersey, and he basically holds all the power as no team would be in their right mind to give up the bounty required to attain 'Melo without the guarantee of him signing an extension.
At different points this season, and stretching back to this summer, the Nets have had multi-team deals in place only to see them fall apart.
Most recently, the Nets, Nuggets and Detroit Pistons had a 15-player deal in the works that was headlined by Anthony, Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton going to New Jersey, Devin Harris, Derrick Favors and multiple first-round picks going to Denver and Troy Murphy's expiring contract going to Detroit.
There would obviously have been other players involved, but those were the most notable.
Like all the others, that deal fell through and the Nuggets are now threatening to trade Anthony to the Knicks if New Jersey does not keep trade talks out of the press.
For their part, the Nets called the Nuggets front office "inexperienced" and talks are now at a standstill.
Denver is clearly frustrated with New Jersey for leaking information and allowing this to become such a distraction to the teams, but to sell off your best player to a team with a lesser offer just to spite the Nets doesn't make much sense.
To be honest, that does reek of a management team in Denver that is not well-seasoned. General Manager Masai Ujiri is in his first year on the job after all.
The Nets are also getting exasperated with Denver's repeated act of becoming gun shy as soon as a deal appears imminent.
Okay, now that all the back story is out of the way, let's consider the Nets' options here.
There is no way of ignoring the fact that getting Anthony would instantly boost the team. He's a top-five talent in the league, and those guys don't grow on trees.
At what cost is it worth getting a player of his caliber, though?
The deal with Detroit makes sense right now, but would it lead to long-term success?
Billups is 34 years old and on the downside of his career, no matter how much he thinks is left in the tank, and Hamilton will be turning 33 in about a month.
Hamilton's game relies on him exhausting his defender by constantly running through screens, eventually giving him more room to knock down his patented mid-range jump shot.
He has even said in the past that he works extra hard on his conditioning, knowing that if he's tired at the end of a game the guy guarding him is completely spent.
At some point all the wear on his body is going to take its toll and prevent him from doing that. It's probably even started already, since his PPG and shooting percentages have dropped off in recent years.
Sure he's on a bad team, but he's also getting old.
Anthony is in his prime, so would it really benefit him to be surrounded by guys whose careers are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel?
Wouldn't that simply make the Nets the Denver Nuggets 2.0?
Here's another idea for the New Jersey, soon to be Brooklyn, Nets. Build your team the old fashioned way. Do it through the draft.
That's not to say that they shouldn't try to get quality players through trades and free agency, but they need to build their core with younger guys.
They have a good nucleus in Harris and Brook Lopez.
Harris may not be an elite-level point guard, but he's very good. He's been stuck on bad New Jersey teams for the past three years, and is still averaging a career-high seven APG this season.
He also just put up a 15-assist game playing alongside Travis Outlaw, Stephen Graham and Quinton Ross. The guy is good.
Much has been made of Lopez's perceived soft play and lack of rebounding this year, and rightfully so as a 7'0" center should be getting more boards.
What has been downplayed, though, is that Lopez was unable to work out for much of the summer while battling mononucleosis, which caused him to lose a significant amount of weight.
It also cost him a chance to play with Team USA, and there's not a single player who went through that experience and did not greatly benefit from it.
The team also has solid role players in Kris Humphries, who has been a revelation this year, Sasha Vujacic and Jordan Farmar.
Although they are currently nursing injuries, sharpshooter Anthony Morrow and rookie Damion James are good players, and the team was playing much better when they were healthy.
We also cannot overlook Derrick Favors.
The rookie's overall numbers are not great, but that is largely due to his inability to stay on the court due to foul trouble—hardly a rare problem for first-year players.
When Favors has been able to play at least 25 minutes, he's averaging 12 PPG and seven RPG to go along with a 61 percent field-goal percentage.
He can run the floor and finish at the rim and is playing well on defense for a rookie. His shooting stroke is also technically sound, which is an indicator that he could end up being a solid shooter.
To sum all that up for you, the Nets have some good pieces in place in terms of player personnel and also have a good coaching staff, led by Avery Johnson.
General manager Billy King has referenced the Oklahoma City Thunder as a team he views as a model organization.
If that's the case, he should just give up on trying to get Anthony and set his team up for success the way OKC did.
That means making good draft selections and allowing the team to find its way in its own time.
New Jersey has five first-round draft picks in the next two years, as well as some extra second-rounders.
Surely they could find some good players with those picks, or trade up to get a lock stud.
The team's biggest hole is at small forward, where Outlaw has become dead weight. James won over the coaching staff with his effort and work ethic, but it's unknown if he'll be a long-term solution at the position.
He could just be a very good role player, and there's nothing wrong with that.
Small forwards who will likely be available in the 2011 draft include Harrison Barnes, Terrence Jones, Derrick Williams and Chris Singleton.
Barnes has certainly underwhelmed so far, but few doubt his potential. Jones is nearly averaging a 20-10 season right now, Williams leads the country in player efficiency rating while knocking down shots at a 66 percent rate and threes at a 70 percent clip, and Singleton is widely regarded as the best defender in college basketball.
Johnson is a defensive-minded coach who would probably love Singleton.
Depending on how some other teams finish this year, the Nets could have three first-round picks this summer. They could land two of the aforementioned players at small forward if none of them have clearly separated themselves, could trade up if necessary or completely fill out their roster with the right selections.
What do you think the Nets should do?
There are also guys like Duke's Nolan Smith who are projected to go in the second round, where they could be real steals.
Since 2007, Oklahoma City has gotten Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka and James Harden through the draft.
During that time, they also traded for or signed Jeff Green, Nenad Krstic, Thabo Sefolosha and Eric Maynor. Green, Krstic and Sefolosha are now starters and Maynor has been solid off the bench.
With all the picks the Nets have in the upcoming years, there's no reason to believe they could not do something similar, provided they take the right guys.
There are also a number of good players who will become free agents over the next few offseasons. If the Nets play their cards right, they should be able to sign some of them.
To add to the possible similarities, the Thunder really took off once they left Seattle and moved to Oklahoma City.
Perhaps the same type of success will ensue for the Nets when they move to Brooklyn in 2012.
It would be hard to turn down a player like Carmelo Anthony. The splashy move is not always the best one, however, and it really does not appear he wants to play for the Nets.
Why sell the farm for a guy who will be unhappy?
It might take longer and be more painful, but making smart draft picks and free agent signings of lesser-known players is starting to look like the best way to go.
There's no question about that. If he wanted to stay in Denver he would have signed their extension offer long ago and put all this drama to rest.
It's been well known for months now that Anthony's preferred destination would be the New York Knicks, but the New Jersey Nets have been trying hard to get their hands on the superstar.
The problem is that Anthony doesn't seem all that enthused about playing for New Jersey, and he basically holds all the power as no team would be in their right mind to give up the bounty required to attain 'Melo without the guarantee of him signing an extension.
At different points this season, and stretching back to this summer, the Nets have had multi-team deals in place only to see them fall apart.
Most recently, the Nets, Nuggets and Detroit Pistons had a 15-player deal in the works that was headlined by Anthony, Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton going to New Jersey, Devin Harris, Derrick Favors and multiple first-round picks going to Denver and Troy Murphy's expiring contract going to Detroit.
There would obviously have been other players involved, but those were the most notable.
Like all the others, that deal fell through and the Nuggets are now threatening to trade Anthony to the Knicks if New Jersey does not keep trade talks out of the press.
For their part, the Nets called the Nuggets front office "inexperienced" and talks are now at a standstill.
Denver is clearly frustrated with New Jersey for leaking information and allowing this to become such a distraction to the teams, but to sell off your best player to a team with a lesser offer just to spite the Nets doesn't make much sense.
To be honest, that does reek of a management team in Denver that is not well-seasoned. General Manager Masai Ujiri is in his first year on the job after all.
The Nets are also getting exasperated with Denver's repeated act of becoming gun shy as soon as a deal appears imminent.
Okay, now that all the back story is out of the way, let's consider the Nets' options here.
There is no way of ignoring the fact that getting Anthony would instantly boost the team. He's a top-five talent in the league, and those guys don't grow on trees.
At what cost is it worth getting a player of his caliber, though?
The deal with Detroit makes sense right now, but would it lead to long-term success?
Billups is 34 years old and on the downside of his career, no matter how much he thinks is left in the tank, and Hamilton will be turning 33 in about a month.
Hamilton's game relies on him exhausting his defender by constantly running through screens, eventually giving him more room to knock down his patented mid-range jump shot.
He has even said in the past that he works extra hard on his conditioning, knowing that if he's tired at the end of a game the guy guarding him is completely spent.
At some point all the wear on his body is going to take its toll and prevent him from doing that. It's probably even started already, since his PPG and shooting percentages have dropped off in recent years.
Sure he's on a bad team, but he's also getting old.
Anthony is in his prime, so would it really benefit him to be surrounded by guys whose careers are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel?
Wouldn't that simply make the Nets the Denver Nuggets 2.0?
Here's another idea for the New Jersey, soon to be Brooklyn, Nets. Build your team the old fashioned way. Do it through the draft.
That's not to say that they shouldn't try to get quality players through trades and free agency, but they need to build their core with younger guys.
They have a good nucleus in Harris and Brook Lopez.
Harris may not be an elite-level point guard, but he's very good. He's been stuck on bad New Jersey teams for the past three years, and is still averaging a career-high seven APG this season.
He also just put up a 15-assist game playing alongside Travis Outlaw, Stephen Graham and Quinton Ross. The guy is good.
Much has been made of Lopez's perceived soft play and lack of rebounding this year, and rightfully so as a 7'0" center should be getting more boards.
What has been downplayed, though, is that Lopez was unable to work out for much of the summer while battling mononucleosis, which caused him to lose a significant amount of weight.
It also cost him a chance to play with Team USA, and there's not a single player who went through that experience and did not greatly benefit from it.
The team also has solid role players in Kris Humphries, who has been a revelation this year, Sasha Vujacic and Jordan Farmar.
Although they are currently nursing injuries, sharpshooter Anthony Morrow and rookie Damion James are good players, and the team was playing much better when they were healthy.
We also cannot overlook Derrick Favors.
The rookie's overall numbers are not great, but that is largely due to his inability to stay on the court due to foul trouble—hardly a rare problem for first-year players.
When Favors has been able to play at least 25 minutes, he's averaging 12 PPG and seven RPG to go along with a 61 percent field-goal percentage.
He can run the floor and finish at the rim and is playing well on defense for a rookie. His shooting stroke is also technically sound, which is an indicator that he could end up being a solid shooter.
To sum all that up for you, the Nets have some good pieces in place in terms of player personnel and also have a good coaching staff, led by Avery Johnson.
General manager Billy King has referenced the Oklahoma City Thunder as a team he views as a model organization.
If that's the case, he should just give up on trying to get Anthony and set his team up for success the way OKC did.
That means making good draft selections and allowing the team to find its way in its own time.
New Jersey has five first-round draft picks in the next two years, as well as some extra second-rounders.
Surely they could find some good players with those picks, or trade up to get a lock stud.
The team's biggest hole is at small forward, where Outlaw has become dead weight. James won over the coaching staff with his effort and work ethic, but it's unknown if he'll be a long-term solution at the position.
He could just be a very good role player, and there's nothing wrong with that.
Small forwards who will likely be available in the 2011 draft include Harrison Barnes, Terrence Jones, Derrick Williams and Chris Singleton.
Barnes has certainly underwhelmed so far, but few doubt his potential. Jones is nearly averaging a 20-10 season right now, Williams leads the country in player efficiency rating while knocking down shots at a 66 percent rate and threes at a 70 percent clip, and Singleton is widely regarded as the best defender in college basketball.
Johnson is a defensive-minded coach who would probably love Singleton.
Depending on how some other teams finish this year, the Nets could have three first-round picks this summer. They could land two of the aforementioned players at small forward if none of them have clearly separated themselves, could trade up if necessary or completely fill out their roster with the right selections.
What do you think the Nets should do?
There are also guys like Duke's Nolan Smith who are projected to go in the second round, where they could be real steals.
Since 2007, Oklahoma City has gotten Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka and James Harden through the draft.
During that time, they also traded for or signed Jeff Green, Nenad Krstic, Thabo Sefolosha and Eric Maynor. Green, Krstic and Sefolosha are now starters and Maynor has been solid off the bench.
With all the picks the Nets have in the upcoming years, there's no reason to believe they could not do something similar, provided they take the right guys.
There are also a number of good players who will become free agents over the next few offseasons. If the Nets play their cards right, they should be able to sign some of them.
To add to the possible similarities, the Thunder really took off once they left Seattle and moved to Oklahoma City.
Perhaps the same type of success will ensue for the Nets when they move to Brooklyn in 2012.
It would be hard to turn down a player like Carmelo Anthony. The splashy move is not always the best one, however, and it really does not appear he wants to play for the Nets.
Why sell the farm for a guy who will be unhappy?
It might take longer and be more painful, but making smart draft picks and free agent signings of lesser-known players is starting to look like the best way to go.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
NBA Trade Rumors: Will Carmelo Anthony and Steve Nash Finally Be Dealt?
NBA Trade Rumors: Will Carmelo Anthony and Steve Nash Finally Be Dealt?
Carmelo Anthony trade rumors have reached a boiling point over the last week.
A potential blockbuster deal is in the works and many are saying that a deal is imminent, possibly as early as today.
As it stands now, the deal involves three teams and 13 players, but that could quickly expand to at least four teams and 15 players.
Steve Nash could also very well find himself wearing new threads before the trade deadline. Phoenix is going nowhere fast, and the time to rebuild may be upon them.
The trade deadline is only weeks away and teams looking to jettison players or to bring in new talent will be working overtime.
Read on to find out about the latest NBA trade rumors surrounding Carmelo Anthony and Steve Nash.
Carmelo Anthony trade rumors have reached a boiling point over the last week.
A potential blockbuster deal is in the works and many are saying that a deal is imminent, possibly as early as today.
As it stands now, the deal involves three teams and 13 players, but that could quickly expand to at least four teams and 15 players.
Steve Nash could also very well find himself wearing new threads before the trade deadline. Phoenix is going nowhere fast, and the time to rebuild may be upon them.
The trade deadline is only weeks away and teams looking to jettison players or to bring in new talent will be working overtime.
Read on to find out about the latest NBA trade rumors surrounding Carmelo Anthony and Steve Nash.
Carmelo Anthony Trade Rumors: How Megadeal Will Impact the Denver Nuggets
NBA news broke Sunday afternoon as Carmelo Anthony is very close to being traded from the Denver Nuggets to the New Jersey Nets.
The Melo-drama will soon finally be over in the Mile High City. Nuggets fans, players and coaches can, at long last, move forward and start anew.
Anthony was asked about the proposed deal today and said, “I really don't know. I'm waiting to see Masai (Ujiri) and Josh (Kroenke)... They haven't been here (Denver) so I'm just patiently waiting until they get back so I have a sit-down with them.”
The deal is not completely finished yet and Anthony has to be persuaded into signing his extension. According to Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski, Melo's agent Leon Rose pulled strings to get Denver native Chauncey Billups included into the deal to join Anthony in New Jersey with Rip Hamilton.
Because the Nuggets front office wanted to get as much as possible back from trading away their two biggest star players and to make the deal work financially, the Pistons became involved in the trade process as well.
The full deal is as follows:
Denver Nuggets Receive:
Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, Anthony Morrow, Ben Uzoh, Stephen Graham, two first-round picks
New Jersey Nets Receive:
Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton (from DET), Shelden Williams, Anthony Carter, Renaldo Balkman/Al Harrington
Detroit Pistons Receive:
Troy Murphy, Johan Petro
With multiple star players being moved around, this is the definition of a “blockbuster trade” and the 13 total players ties the mark for the largest trade in NBA history.
All that movement impacts all three teams mightily and puts them in three unique levels of the rebuilding process.
The Pistons open up cap room for next year and beyond by dropping $37 million by losing Hamilton's $25 million in the next two years and Murphy's expiring $12 million—they will be a major player in free agency in the summer of 2011.
The Nets would now have a dynamic and explosive starting four; with Billups, Hamilton, Anthony and Brook Lopez—they could conceivably complete for the East next season (at 10-27 currently, the fantastic four would have to make up a lot of ground quickly to be playoff-bound this year.) The trade would make New Jersey the furthest along in the building process of the three teams involved.
The Nuggets would find themselves somewhere in between the other two teams—not completely starting from scratch but not necessarily ready to compete by next season either.
The deal is interesting from the standpoint of Denver's point guard situation, as Ty Lawson has been steadily growing into the point guard of the future and Devin Harris (16.6 PPG, 6.8 APG) is actually out-performing Billups (16.9 PPG, 4.9 APG) this season.
Would George Karl move forward and move Lawson (10.8 PPG, 4.0 APG) to starter, or would he start Harris? Harris has been the starter in New Jersey for the past four seasons, but would he be willing to back up the emerging Lawson as he did in Dallas his first three years?
Either way, Denver's back court depth would grow with this move.
And trading away Anthony leaves a major void at the small forward position for Denver, but third-year guard-forward Anthony Morrow could step into that role or at least split time with Gary Forbes. Morrow can flat-out fill up the basket, scoring 12.8 PPG on 45.9 percent shooting from the field this season, and he's a career 45.1 percent shooter from beyond the arc.
Morrow's 6'5” 210 pound frame suits the shooting guard position more than it does small forward, and Karl could also start JR Smith—as he did when Melo was out due to injury earlier in the year—at the three spot and let Morrow backup the two. Plus, Morrow gives the Nuggets more depth at shooting guard, meaning they could be more likely to trade away Smith, who is in the final year of his deal with Denver.
Derrick Favors, the 6'10” 245 pound power forward, was the most coveted piece in the deal for Denver, because he's a rookie and the Nuggets desperately need to move younger in the front court. Kenyon Martin will likely remain the starter for the time being, but he's in the last year of his contract and Favors could transition into Denver's starting four next season.
Favors is an athletic and lanky power forward who loves to crash the boards. In around 19 minutes per game with the Nets, Favors has averaged 6.7 points and 5.1 rebounds, putting him 26th in the league in rebounds per 48 minutes, far ahead of the Nuggets' Nene. Meaning when his minutes rise, he could be one of the better rebounders in the NBA.
Also included in the trade to Denver would be Ben Uzoh, a 6'3” 205 pound rookie guard (2.9 PPG, 1.4 APG) and Stephen Graham, a 6'6” 215 pound veteran guard-forward (4.0 PPG, 2.2 RPG). Both Uzoh and Graham would simply provide depth; Uzoh would likely replace Carter as the third PG and Graham could help play the three spot as his brother Joey did last year.
The Melo-drama will soon finally be over in the Mile High City. Nuggets fans, players and coaches can, at long last, move forward and start anew.
Anthony was asked about the proposed deal today and said, “I really don't know. I'm waiting to see Masai (Ujiri) and Josh (Kroenke)... They haven't been here (Denver) so I'm just patiently waiting until they get back so I have a sit-down with them.”
The deal is not completely finished yet and Anthony has to be persuaded into signing his extension. According to Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski, Melo's agent Leon Rose pulled strings to get Denver native Chauncey Billups included into the deal to join Anthony in New Jersey with Rip Hamilton.
Because the Nuggets front office wanted to get as much as possible back from trading away their two biggest star players and to make the deal work financially, the Pistons became involved in the trade process as well.
The full deal is as follows:
Denver Nuggets Receive:
Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, Anthony Morrow, Ben Uzoh, Stephen Graham, two first-round picks
New Jersey Nets Receive:
Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton (from DET), Shelden Williams, Anthony Carter, Renaldo Balkman/Al Harrington
Detroit Pistons Receive:
Troy Murphy, Johan Petro
With multiple star players being moved around, this is the definition of a “blockbuster trade” and the 13 total players ties the mark for the largest trade in NBA history.
All that movement impacts all three teams mightily and puts them in three unique levels of the rebuilding process.
The Pistons open up cap room for next year and beyond by dropping $37 million by losing Hamilton's $25 million in the next two years and Murphy's expiring $12 million—they will be a major player in free agency in the summer of 2011.
The Nets would now have a dynamic and explosive starting four; with Billups, Hamilton, Anthony and Brook Lopez—they could conceivably complete for the East next season (at 10-27 currently, the fantastic four would have to make up a lot of ground quickly to be playoff-bound this year.) The trade would make New Jersey the furthest along in the building process of the three teams involved.
The Nuggets would find themselves somewhere in between the other two teams—not completely starting from scratch but not necessarily ready to compete by next season either.
The deal is interesting from the standpoint of Denver's point guard situation, as Ty Lawson has been steadily growing into the point guard of the future and Devin Harris (16.6 PPG, 6.8 APG) is actually out-performing Billups (16.9 PPG, 4.9 APG) this season.
Would George Karl move forward and move Lawson (10.8 PPG, 4.0 APG) to starter, or would he start Harris? Harris has been the starter in New Jersey for the past four seasons, but would he be willing to back up the emerging Lawson as he did in Dallas his first three years?
Either way, Denver's back court depth would grow with this move.
And trading away Anthony leaves a major void at the small forward position for Denver, but third-year guard-forward Anthony Morrow could step into that role or at least split time with Gary Forbes. Morrow can flat-out fill up the basket, scoring 12.8 PPG on 45.9 percent shooting from the field this season, and he's a career 45.1 percent shooter from beyond the arc.
Morrow's 6'5” 210 pound frame suits the shooting guard position more than it does small forward, and Karl could also start JR Smith—as he did when Melo was out due to injury earlier in the year—at the three spot and let Morrow backup the two. Plus, Morrow gives the Nuggets more depth at shooting guard, meaning they could be more likely to trade away Smith, who is in the final year of his deal with Denver.
Derrick Favors, the 6'10” 245 pound power forward, was the most coveted piece in the deal for Denver, because he's a rookie and the Nuggets desperately need to move younger in the front court. Kenyon Martin will likely remain the starter for the time being, but he's in the last year of his contract and Favors could transition into Denver's starting four next season.
Favors is an athletic and lanky power forward who loves to crash the boards. In around 19 minutes per game with the Nets, Favors has averaged 6.7 points and 5.1 rebounds, putting him 26th in the league in rebounds per 48 minutes, far ahead of the Nuggets' Nene. Meaning when his minutes rise, he could be one of the better rebounders in the NBA.
Also included in the trade to Denver would be Ben Uzoh, a 6'3” 205 pound rookie guard (2.9 PPG, 1.4 APG) and Stephen Graham, a 6'6” 215 pound veteran guard-forward (4.0 PPG, 2.2 RPG). Both Uzoh and Graham would simply provide depth; Uzoh would likely replace Carter as the third PG and Graham could help play the three spot as his brother Joey did last year.
Giada De Laurentiis' Husband 'Embarrassed' by John Mayer Rumors
Giada De Laurentiis covers the February issue of Redbook, and in the interview she opens up about her marriage and shocking rumors that she cheated on her husband with John Mayer.
A supposed eyewitness told Star magazine in November that Mayer and the 'Everyday Italian' star were spotted canoodling while partying in New York City. But Mayer's rep denied the reports and told PopEater in November that "the claims are absolutely ridiculous."
Now De Laurentiis is telling her side of the story, admitting a fun weekend in New York with Todd Thompson, her husband of seven years, and that their 2-year-old daughter Jade was turned upside down by the rumors.
"The John Mayer incident was completely unexpected. I was shocked. And not so much for me, but for my husband and family. ... Todd was embarrassed that his family in Michigan would see it and think, 'What is going on over there in Hollywood?'" she told Redbook.
"What made it all even more surprising is that I haven't had any contact with John Mayer in three years. You know how you'll briefly get introduced to somebody? Maybe we chatted for five minutes, but I wouldn't consider that intimate. ... I think the only things that could possibly have tied us together is that we were at the same hotel that weekend in question -- which, by the way, my husband was with me there as well."
A supposed eyewitness told Star magazine in November that Mayer and the 'Everyday Italian' star were spotted canoodling while partying in New York City. But Mayer's rep denied the reports and told PopEater in November that "the claims are absolutely ridiculous."
Now De Laurentiis is telling her side of the story, admitting a fun weekend in New York with Todd Thompson, her husband of seven years, and that their 2-year-old daughter Jade was turned upside down by the rumors.
"The John Mayer incident was completely unexpected. I was shocked. And not so much for me, but for my husband and family. ... Todd was embarrassed that his family in Michigan would see it and think, 'What is going on over there in Hollywood?'" she told Redbook.
"What made it all even more surprising is that I haven't had any contact with John Mayer in three years. You know how you'll briefly get introduced to somebody? Maybe we chatted for five minutes, but I wouldn't consider that intimate. ... I think the only things that could possibly have tied us together is that we were at the same hotel that weekend in question -- which, by the way, my husband was with me there as well."
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