Denver Nuggets Blog – Page 49 – NBA Blog

Raymond Felton describes his game

Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post reports:

Ask Felton what his greatest attribute as a basketball player is and he’ll hit you with one word: leader.

“When you talk about my game, you might say I’m fast off the dribble, I can get in the paint, I pass the ball, whatever. Tenacious defender,”

Felton said Tuesday. “One thing people always say about me is I’m a leader, and that’s what I’ve always been. So, I keep that role everywhere I go.”

And that’s good for the Nuggets. When the 6-foot-1 Felton arrived in Denver a week ago as part of the blockbuster Carmelo Anthony trade with New York, Felton, 26, said Nuggets coach George Karl told him his first task was to lead.

Felton’s leadership showed up big Monday night in a victory over Atlanta, when he took over in the fourth quarter of what was a close game. In the final period, he scored 11 points, grabbed three rebounds and had three assists as the Nuggets pulled away late.

Danilo Gallinari out 7-10 days with fractured toe

The AP reports:

The Nuggets will be without forward Danilo Gallinari for a week to 10 days after X-rays revealed that he had fractured his left big toe.

Gallinari stubbed his toe late in a loss to Portland on Friday night and was held out of Monday night’s 100-90 victory over the Atlanta Hawks because of continuing soreness. Soon after beating Atlanta 100-90, the Nuggets announced that the toe was broken.
Gallinari scored 30 points against the Blazers, one shy of tying his career high.

Carmelo Anthony debut was highest-rated regular season Knicks game on MSG in 16 years

Last night’s New York Knicks-Milwaukee Bucks game on MSG Network, featuring the Knicks debut of All-Star Carmelo Anthony, scored a whopping 6.75 household Nielsen rating (507,285 households) to become the highest-rated regular season Knicks game on MSG in 16 years.

The game narrowly missed topping Michael Jordan’s famous “Double Nickel” game from March 28, 1995 (6.78 HH) when Jordan scored 55 points in his return to Madison Square Garden after his first retirement from the NBA.

The game easily surpassed this season’s previous high of a 3.61 HH rating for the Knicks-Celtics game on December 15, 2010. Last night’s game also beat MSG and ESPN’s combined HH rating of 6.27 for that Knicks-Celtics matchup.

“Last night’s Knicks game was a defining moment at The Garden, and the production team translated that into a stunning experience on television for more than half a million fans watching at home,” said Mike Bair, president, MSG Media.

The game registered season-high numbers in every measurable demo, specifically the key M18-34 demo which scored an 8.42 HH rating that more than doubled this season’s previous high of a 4.06 HH rating for the Knicks-Lakers game on January 9, 2011. The quarter-hour high for the game was an 8.20 HH rating between 10:00-10:15 p.m.

Through 52 games on MSG Network this season, the Knicks are averaging a 1.62 HH rating, up 60% over last season at this time (1.01 HH). The Knicks are also averaging a 2.30 rating in the M18-34 demo, up 147% over last season at this time (0.93 M18-34).

The Knicks travel to Cleveland on Friday to face the Cavaliers at 7:30 p.m. and then to Miami on Sunday to take on the Heat at 8:00 p.m. Both games will be telecast live on MSG Network, and will be preceded by “Knicks Game Night” 30 minutes prior to tip-off.

Knicks fans welcome Carmelo Anthony

Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated reports:

They started standing in Madison Square Garden at the 15-minute mark, when a faraway shot of the Knicks hallway huddle was shown on the JumboTron. They stayed standing, some 19,000 strong, while Carmelo Anthony went through warmups and grooved to “STAT and Melo,” a remix of Wiz Khalifa’s “Black and Yellow” was played. And they gave Anthony a thundering ovation when his spot in the lineup was announced. Carmelo Anthony may have been excited to be in New York but no more than New York was excited to have him.

This is what they wanted, city and player. Anthony wanted to play in a big market — a big east coast market, if possible — and play on a team with a chance to win. New York won’t win a championship this season, but with Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire, both 26, they have the building blocks of a potential dynasty. A couple of good drafts, a free agent or two, maybe another big deal (hello, Chris Paul) and the Knicks should be in business.

The fans wanted it, too. They liked Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton and Wilson Chandler. And Timofey Mozgov was starting to grow on them. But Anthony? They love Anthony. Late Monday night when news of the deal first broke, a cluster of weary people waiting in a cab line at JFK airport clutching BlackBerry’s burst out in a staggered cheer. On Wednesday it wasn’t just the Garden that was sold out; outside the arena hundreds of fans, some carrying hand made signs with messages to Anthony, pressed near the building to watch the game on the big screens hanging from the walls.

La La Vazquez, wife of Carmelo Anthony, gets VH1 reality show

Apr. 25, 2010 - Salt Lake City, UTAH, USA - epa02131979 Denver Nugget's Carmelo Anthony drives to the basket during a game against the Utah Jazz in the first half of their Western Conference first round playoff game at the Energy Solutions Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, 25 April 2010.

VH1 has teamed up with actress and television personality La La Vazquez for the new series “La La’s Full Court Life” (working title). Slated for premiere in August, 2011, the 10 episode, 30 minute docu-series, which began filming in January, will continue where the wedding special, “La La’s Full Court Wedding” left off as La La and her husband, NBA Forward Carmelo Anthony, prepare for a sudden move to New York City, where he will play for the New York Knicks.

The wedding may be over but the fun is just beginning for La La. With the sudden news that her husband is being traded to the New York Knicks, La La will deal with new adventures in matrimony and parenthood as she prepares to move back home to New York City. Along the way, viewers will also see La La juggle her busy acting and television hosting career and seek advice from some of her famous friends, including 50 Cent, Kelly Rowland, Trina and Serena Williams to name a few.

“Viewers connect with La La because despite the fairy tale wedding and NBA star husband, she is a real, down to Earth, hardworking woman who stays true to herself,” said Jeff Olde, EVP, Original Programming and Production, VH1. “The best thing about the new series is that while pursuing and realizing her dreams, La La gets to take us back to her home in New York, where her story began.”

VH1’s “La La’s Full Court Life” is executive produced by Cris Abrego for 51 Minds Entertainment, La La Vazquez and Carmelo Anthony for Krossover Entertainment, and Steven Grossman on behalf of The Collective. The series was created by Cris Abrego, La La Vazquez, and Steven Grossman. 51 Minds is an LLC Endemol Company, who also produced the record-breaking series “Rock of Love,” “Flavor of Love,” “Charm School,” and “I Love New York.” The production teams’ programming launched VH1 into their highest ratings ever. Ben Samek and Rabih Gholam are also executive producers for the series and the company. For VH1, the series is executive produced by Jill Holmes, Kristen Kelly and Jeff Olde.

Gallinari, Felton react to being traded to Nuggets

Jonathan Abrams of the New York Times reports:

“I’m not sad,” Danilo Gallinari said. “I don’t have any particular emotions now. When I first came there, three years ago, that’s the mentality that you have to approach the N.B.A. Anything can happen, so you can’t be mad at some trades. You’ve just got to live with it and do the best you can. They pay me to play basketball. That’s the only thing I’ve got to concentrate on and do.”

Raymond Felton said he was tired of talking about the trade, even though it had been official for only a few hours.

“I’m here where a team wants me,” Felton said. “The Denver Nuggets wanted me. New York didn’t, so that’s why things happened.”

Felton sent a message through his agent to Denver management asking that none of the incoming Knicks be traded before Thursday’s deadline. He wanted to show their worth together, he said.

“I’m happy to be here,” Felton said. “I don’t even want to hear about it or talk about the trade no more. We’ve done talked about it for three months straight and I don’t even want to talk about no trade. I’m a Denver Nugget now, and I’m happy to be here.”

Nuggets apologize to Billups after trading him

Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post reports:

It’s not every day — or any day, for that matter — that a player gets a personal apology from the front office that traded him.

But then, Chauncey Billups wasn’t just any player for the Nuggets.

His inclusion in the trade to the New York Knicks was the name that really stung for Nuggets fans. Billups grew up here, played basketball at George Washington High School and the University of Colorado and never wastes an opportunity to show his love for the city.

That’s why, said Nuggets executives Josh Kroenke and Masai Ujiri, it was painful to let him go. And that’s why the duo opened their Tuesday evening news conference in an unusual manner.

“I want to offer a personal apology to the Billups family,” Kroenke said. “They mean the world to me personally, and I know that Chauncey means everything to Denver. And when I say Denver, I mean just Denver basketball on every level. He is Denver basketball. He was a high school star here, he was a college star here, he was a professional star here. It was an incredibly tough decision to include him in this trade.”

Carmelo Anthony traded to Knicks in 3-team deal involving Billups, Felton, Gallinari

The Denver Nuggets today acquired F Wilson Chandler, G Raymond Felton, F Danilo Gallinari, C Kosta Koufos and C Timofey Mozgov as part of a three-team trade with the New York Knicks and Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Nuggets also received New York’s first-round draft pick in 2014, second-round picks in 2012 and 2013 and cash considerations. The second-round picks were acquired by the Knicks from Golden State last summer.

In exchange, the Nuggets sent F Carmelo Anthony, G Chauncey Billups, G Anthony Carter, F Renaldo Balkman and F Shelden Williams to New York, which traded C Eddy Curry and F Anthony Randolph to Minnesota and will get F Corey Brewer from the Timberwolves.

“Carmelo has been an important part of the best seven-year stretch in Denver Nuggets history. We have shared many special moments and were fortunate to watch him grow into an All-Star and one of the league’s top players,” Nuggets team president Josh Kroenke said. “However, Carmelo made it very clear early in the season that he wasn’t willing to re-commit to the organization and wanted to pursue other opportunities in basketball and life. At that point, we decided it was imperative that we do what was in the best interest of the Denver Nuggets and our fans. We wish Carmelo the best in his career and sincerely thank him for what he’s helped us accomplish.

“I would also like to personally thank Chauncey Billups, Anthony Carter, Renaldo Balkman and Shelden Williams for their contributions on and off court as members of the Denver Nuggets. I have gotten especially close with Chauncey and Anthony during their time here in Denver and their contributions to this organization and city goes far beyond wins and losses. They will truly be missed.”

Three of the four players acquired by the Nuggets are former first-round draft picks; Felton was taken fifth overall in 2005, Chandler 23rd in 2007 and Gallinari sixth in 2008.

Chandler, 6-8, 225, averaged a career-high 16.4 points and 5.9 rebounds in 51 games with the Knicks this season. The 23-year-old has scored at least 20 points 16 times and recorded five double-doubles.

Felton, 6-1, 205, is averaging a career highs in points (17.1), assists (9.0) and steals (1.8) while starting all 54 games in his sixth NBA season. Felton, 26, is fifth in the NBA in assists per game and he joins Utah’s Deron Williams as the only two NBA players averaging at least 17 points and 9 assists.

Gallinari, 6-10, 225, is averaging a career-high 15.9 points and shooting .893 from the free-throw line (sixth in the NBA) in 2010-11. The 22-year-old was second in the league last season with 186 three-pointers.

Koufos, 7-0, 265, appeared in 39 games with Minnesota this season, averaging 2.7 points and 2.5 rebounds in limited minutes. Mozgov, 7-1, 250, averaged 4.0 points and 3.1 rebounds in just 13.5 minutes as a part-time starter for the Knicks. The 24-year-old rookie spent the previous six seasons playing professionally in his native Russia.

“We are excited about the talented young players we acquired in this trade,” Kroenke said. “They were valuable contributors to one of the most improved teams in the NBA this season. We are looking forward to making another postseason push. Our goals remain the same: improve every day, play hard every game and bring an NBA championship to Denver.”

Carnegie Deli in NYC to launch Melo Sandwich

TMZ reports:

Carmelo’s trade to the New York Knicks isn’t even official yet, but Sandy Levine, owner of the Carnegie Deli, tells TMZ they are already launching the new Melo Sandwich and it is packed with everything you could ever want on a sandwich:

— Pastrami
— Corned Beef
— Salami
— Bacon
— Tomato
— Russian dressing
— On rye bread

The sandwich will run you a cool $21.95 and that price was chosen for a reason — if they sell around 3,000,000 of them … it equals the $65 million contract Melo is likely to sign with the Knicks.

Nuggets trade Carmelo Anthony to Knicks

Benjamin Hochman and Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post report:

The Nuggets traded Melo to the New York Knicks tonight, a league source said. Denver gets Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov, the Knicks 2014 first-round draft pick, the Warriors’ 2012 second-round pick, the Warriors’ 2013 second-round pick and $3 million in cash.

Anthony will go to New York, along with Chauncey Billups, Shelden Williams, Anthony Carter and Renaldo Balkman.