Bob Young of the Arizona Republic states that if the Nuggets want to trade Van Exel they will probably need to sacrafice center Raef LaFrentz in the same deal, which is something they do not want to do.  Denver had a chance to sign LaFrentz to a contract extension in the summer but were unable to come up with a suitable deal, and now it looks like they will not get the chance at the seasons end either.

The sacrafice of LaFrentz comes in light of Van Exel's public disclosure of his wanting to get out, a move which offers Denver very little flexability in discussing potential trades.  The front runner seems to be New York, who is offering a deal including Marcus Camby.  Adding a player like LaFrentz would act as a sweetener, but as Young stats other teams will need to be involved due to cap reasons.  Golden State (Marc Jackson) and Phoenix were listed as possible suitors to help with a deal.

Young reports that another deal circulating is Portland's Damon Stoudamire, Dale Davis and Bonzi Wells reportedly would be offered for Van Exel, LaFrentz and Tariq Abdul-Wahad, although the deal does not make sense from Portland's perspective.