Could Carmelo Anthony wind up a Philadelphia 76er?


Well, this might go a long way in filling up the Wells Fargo Center.

According to Philly.com's Kate Fagan: "The 76ers have contacted the Denver Nuggets about a potential trade for star forward Carmelo Anthony, multiple NBA sources confirmed on Sunday."

It looked like Anthony was headed to New Jersey just a few days ago, but the four-team trade reportedly broke down when the Charlotte Bobcats refused to part ways with D.J. Augustin. And really, who could blame them?

It's going to be exciting for Sixers fans to hear that their team is finally looking to make some sort of splash and get a top-five player like Anthony, but let's not get carried away. There are several key issues that will likely get in the way of this trade ever going down.

Sources around the league told Fagan that the Nuggets have "always loved" Andre Iguodala, but there's no way Iguodala would be enough to complete the trade. It would also take a couple expiring contracts and some young talent -- perhaps Thaddeus Young and maybe even the Sixers' first-round pick Evan Turner.

But let's even say the Sixers have enough talent to satisfy the Nuggets' demands. There is still the issue of getting Anthony to sign an extension to stay in Philadelphia. Anthony has a list of cities he'd like to play in -- Orlando, Chicago, and New York -- and none of them are Philly.

That doesn't necessarily mean Anthony wouldn't consider playing in the fourth-largest market in the country, but it's going to be difficult to convince him to give up on his dream of playing with a guy like Amare' Stoudemire in New York.

Anthony would make the Sixers instant contenders in the East, even if they do have to give up some of their young talent along with Iguodala, but the chances of Anthony actually winding up in Philadelphia are as slim as the Sixers actually being contenders in the East without him.