We’re all frustrated and tired of the reports and rumors regarding Carmelo Anthony. But I’m here to tell you a Knicks-Nuggets trade will happen. Whether it be within the next hour or an hour before the NBA trade deadline, the Knicks will acquire Carmelo Anthony.

The uncertainty surrounding the situation is about who the Knicks will be giving up in the deal. The Knicks’ current offer to the Nuggets is Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton and a future first-round pick. The Nuggets are pushing for the inclusion of Timofey Mozgov in the trade, but the Knicks aren’t budging. If the Knicks were to include Mozgov, reports are the Nuggets would turn around and trade him and either Gallinari, Chandler or Felton to the Nets for two first-round picks.

The Knicks may not be budging on the inclusion of Mozgov in the trade, but that isn’t a deal-breaker. The reason for this is because the Knicks are the only team left in this thing.

The Nets are out. Carmelo is not signing an extension with the Nets. Prokhorov and the Nets know this. The media may not be reporting that the Nets are out, but if Carmelo was open to signing an extension with the Nets he would already be playing in Newark by now.

And there’s no way Carmelo stays in Denver. Carmelo and the Nuggets are universes apart. There’s no repairing that relationship.

So, Carmelo is not going to agree to an extension with the Nets, he’s not going to sign the extension with the Nuggets, and the Nuggets aren’t going to hold on to him and get nothing in return when he leaves in free agency. Also, other teams outside of the Nets and Knicks aren’t getting involved.

That leaves the Knicks.

And that leaves the Nuggets needing the Knicks.

The closer to the deadline this lingers, the more leverage the Knicks have because of reasons previously mentioned.

The Knicks could facilitate the trade faster by including Mozgov, but why? The Nuggets will be sweating at 2:00 p.m. on February 24.

And they’ll accept the Knicks’ offer.

The parameters have been set in the talks between the Knicks and Nuggets for Carmelo Anthony. The Knicks are willing to part with Wilson Chandler or Danilo Gallinari and a source with knowledge of the situation said that including a Raymond Felton-Chauncey Billups swap would not be a deal-breaker.

The issue at hand is the precarious decision to complete a blockbuster deal that involves even more players, perhaps rookies Timofey Mozgov and Landry Fields, and dramatically jumbles the roster, the starting lineup and the rotation with 28 games left — and very little time for practice — after the Feb. 24 trade deadline.

Getting ‘Melo makes either Gallo or Chandler expendable. Inserting ‘Melo into the Knicks’ lineup in place of one of those two players makes the Knicks a better team. The question is whether Denver’s asking price will go down the closer we get to the Feb. 24 trade deadline. If the Knicks’ offer on Feb. 23 is Gallo or Chandler, Curry and a first-round pick they get from another team for Anthony Randolph, do the Nuggets turn that down?

From Broussard’s report:

In the proposed trade, New York would send Anthony Randolph and Eddy Curry to Minnesota and the Timberwolves would send Corey Brewer and a first-round pick to Denver. Denver would also receive Wilson Chandler from New York.

The deal is not expected to happen until the middle of next week at the earliest, and one source said it could drag out until the trade deadline. Denver, which has been exchanging proposals with the Knicks for the past couple weeks, is weighing other options.

To be able to acquire Carmelo for Chandler, Curry and Randolph would be remarkable. The Knicks are in a great spot. Denver doesn’t have much leverage and time is ticking for them to deal Carmelo before they lose him for nothing in free agency.

From Frank Isola of the NY Daily News:

It’s an interesting development because the same source contends that Chandler is upset over persistent reports that he will be part of a potential deal for Carmelo Anthony. Chandler finally broke out of a slump with 25 points in Monday’s victory over Washington and admitted to feeling relief after making his first shot.

“He’s really worried that he’s going to get traded,” the source added. ”He doesn’t want to leave New York. And he doesn’t want to be in Denver.”

From ESPNNewYork.com:

“After getting a taste of this so far,” Fields said, “no, I couldn’t imagine playing anywhere else. I’d love to be here forever.”

Both Chandler and Fields have been linked to Carmelo Anthony trade chatter. Chandler, who will be a restricted free agent after this season, played really well all season long up until about two weeks ago when it seems like the persistent trade talk may have finally gotten to him. Fields, a standout rookie, is a smart, high-energy player with high basketball instincts but reports are that the Nuggets don’t think very highly of him. Maybe his performance against he Heat changes that.

Neither guy wants to leave the Knicks and I can’t blame them, especially Chandler. Chandler has served time on some bad Knicks’ teams and just as the Knicks are on the rise and ready for a playoff push, he may be gone in a flash and traded to a team that is rebuilding.

But Chandler could also be gone after this season if the Knicks choose not to re-sign him. At least he’d have the rest of this year though.

I, for one, cannot wait until the February 24 trade deadline when things will be much clearer.

The Knicks played downright awful against one of the worst teams in the NBA. They couldn’t find a rhythm on offense and didn’t shoot the ball well at all.

My time at the Garden wasn’t a total loss, however, because I picked up this:

I’m kind of pissed they only had size XL, but hopefully it shrinks down to a large.

I have always wanted ‘Melo on the Knicks, but the Knicks have been playing so well so far this year, surpassing expectations, that I started second-guessing myself. Maybe they don’t necessarily need ‘Melo.

Well they do. As good as Wilson Chandler has been, he is not Carmelo Anthony. The Knicks can make the playoffs and maybe get to the second round with their currently constructed team, plus a good player or two, within the next few years, but if the Knicks want to contend for a championship, they need Carmelo Anthony. The price may be steep, some combination of a first-round pick, Chandler, Landry Fields or Danilo Gallinari, of whom I’d be the most hard-pressed to give up Fields because you need role players like Fields on your team, but it will be worth it.

The Knicks’ chances of getting ‘Melo as a free agent, the optimal scenario, isn’t great. The best possible scenario, although somewhat unlikely because ‘Melo would lose out on millions, would be for ‘Melo to be traded as a “rental” to a team like Houston and then sign with the Knicks as a free agent. The Nuggets aren’t forced to trade with the Knicks and still get a package of useful pieces for ‘Melo. ‘Melo’s wallet is the loser in this deal, but he winds up in the city he wants to play in for the team he wants to play for. But I’m not counting on this scenario happening.

‘Melo is going to be traded to the Knicks or Nets, depending on if he will sign an extension with the Nets or not. If he will, he’ll be a Net and make the transition to Brooklyn as the face of the franchise. If he won’t, the Nuggets will cave in and deal with the Knicks.

“Wilson’s a restricted free agent and I’m going to sign him. He’s a helluva player,” Donnie Walsh told the NY Post.

The NY Post article also reports that Chandler may be looking for a five-year, $60 million deal.

If Chandler keeps progressing, the deal he receives may become money well spent by the Knicks.

I know what you’re thinking, though. What about Carmelo Anthony? We’ll have to see how the CBA plays out first (and also see how the Carmelo Anthony situation plays out before the trade deadline), but according to the NY Post article:

The Knicks can snare both if the old CBA has the same rule regarding teams’ ability to exceed the salary cap when re-signing their own player. To do so, the Knicks would have to first sign Anthony, then Chandler.

Again, the new CBA is going to have an impact on all of this, and so will how the Carmelo Anthony situation plays out. But from what we’ve seen out of Chandler this year, it would behoove the Knicks to keep him in their future plans.