In a television appearance on Thursday, Carmelo Anthony talked about the growing media frenzy surrounding his reported desire to part ways with the Nuggets.
Anthony said the chatter is premature because he is not yet a free agent. Then Anthony seemed to emphasize the part about becoming a free agent, after a gentle nudge from the interviewer George Lopez.
"I'm a Nugget. I'm a Nugget, man," Anthony said.
"There are a lot of rumors. It's crazy how somebody else will predict where they want you to go at, what team they want you on," Anthony continued. "It's overwhelming sometimes to read the blogs and see the Internet and see what people are saying. Everybody wants to see me go here, everybody wants to see me go there. And I'm not even a free agent yet. That's the tough part."
"If you were a free agent ...?" Lopez prompted.
"That's a different story," Anthony responded, laughing.
If Anthony is open to playing out the final season of his contract and becoming an unrestricted free agent next summer, it would be a significant development. Conventional wisdom has been that Anthony is determined to avoid free agency by signing a contract extension -- with a team to which the Nuggets trade him -- before a new collective bargaining agreement is in place.
The attempt to read Anthony's intentions is another indicator that the Summer of LeBron has become the Late Summer of Melo, as the sports world has gradually turned its attention to the stalemate between the Nuggets and their superstar.