Team USA Notebook: Boeheim Hopes Anthony Stays Long-Term in Denver

LAS VEGAS -- If Carmelo Anthony's college coach has any say, he'd like the star forward to stay long-term in Denver.

"I would hope that Denver could make improvements like they're going to try to do and that he'll be able to stay there,'' Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, a Team USA assistant, said in a Thursday interview with FanHouse after the third day here of training camp. "I think that's the best thing. But that's just my opinion. He's there. He knows what it's like.''

Jim Boeheim, left, with Mike Krzyzewski, center, and Nate McMillan, right

The Nuggets have offered Anthony a three-year, $64.7 million extension, which a source has told FanHouse he's expected eventually to sign. That would take Anthony, who has two years left on his contract but can opt out of the last year and become a free agent next summer, through the 2014-15 season.

Boeheim saw Anthony at his July 10 wedding in New York to MTV personality La La Vazquez. He said they "didn't really talk about'' his extension offer, but Boeheim expects to discuss that subject late in the summer when Anthony will be in Syracuse, N.Y., to do some charity work.

It remains to be seen whether Anthony will have not signed his extension by that time. Anthony told FanHouse last month he might wait a while, perhaps until close to the June 30, 2011 deadline to sign the extension, to see what type of moves the Nuggets make this offseason and how they might look in 2010-11.

Boeheim sees both sides of the situation. He spoke about a new collective bargaining agreement going into effect after next season that could curtail maximum salaries. But he mentioned free agent LeBron James earlier this month taking less money to bolt from Cleveland to Miami because he believed it offered a better chance to win.



"If you don't sign an extension, then you're under a new collective bargaining agreement and it's going to be a 30-percent reduction (in salary),'' said Boeheim, whose Orangemen won the 2003 NCAA title in Anthony's only season at the school. "It would seem to me that players might have to sign it.

"What's happening now, with Chris Paul coming out (reports that the star guard wants to be traded from mediocre New Orleans), is they all want to win. They're not really thinking about the money that much as much as they're thinking of winning. These guys make enough money that, if they give up $8 million or something and they're making $60 million or something (the approximate amount of Anthony's extension), they'd rather win.''

Boeheim said he doesn't have a feel yet for what Anthony will do.

"It's just like LeBron,'' Boeheim said. "You've got to do what you think is the best for you to get in the right situation where you can win. That's what I think (Anthony has) got to do. How that plays out, there's a lot of complications ahead.''

Big Stars on Hand

Chauncey Billups greets Dwyane Wade

Miami guard Dwyane Wade and Paul trained together Thursday morning in Las Vegas. And James soon is expected to join them.

"Wade and Chris Paul, they worked out before we got here,'' said Colangelo, who had said Wednesday that Heat stars Wade and James were due to fly into Las Vegas that night, hours after Paul had arrived and watched practice Wednesday. "So we visited with them. They were here for the first half of (Thursday's) practice. I haven't seen LeBron yet, but I think he's in town. He definitely is going to be working out with these guys all weekend.''

James, Wade and Paul are all on the Team USA roster, but elected not to play in this summer's World Championship as did all holdovers from the 2008 Olympic team. Paul wanted to play but didn't believe he had sufficiently healed from a knee injury he suffered late last season.

With media reports swirling about Paul apparently wanting out of New Orleans, he had left before media members were allowed to watch the last half hour of practice.

Big Man Evaluation

The evaluation of Team USA's big men will not be a short one.

Colangelo said team officials are going to take their time in studying the reduced pool of post players. That means most figure to be invited to the Aug. 10-16 training camp in New York.

"A decision on it might come later rather than soon on the bigs,'' Colangelo said.

With five big men having dropped off the team in the past week, the post players left in camp are centers Tyson Chandler, Brook Lopez and JaVale McGee and power forwards Kevin Love, Lamar Odom and Jeff Green.

Colangelo said McGee, who at least has a chance to make the team after having presumably no shot when he was invited on the eve of camp, had a "good day'' Thursday. Colangelo also lauded Chandler after having said Wednesday he was "not in shape.''

"Thursday was a major improvement over the last couple of days,'' Colangelo said of Chandler. "That was pretty evident because he's a shot-blocker, rebounding type, and you need a big. He's helped his stock tremendously in the past 24 hours.''

Best Day So Far

Day 3 brought some glee from Team USA coach Mike Krzyzewski.

"I thought we had a great effort,'' Krzyzewski said. "This was our best day (of camp).''

Krzyzewski said Team USA worked more on practice situations than on tryout drills, which had been the emphasis the first two days. The Americans scrimmaged against a USA Basketball college select team, and forward Kevin Durant was impressive during the period the media was allowed to watch.

Point guard and team leader Chauncey Billups said Thursday "was a fabulous day for us'' after Wednesday was "not a great" showing.

Chris Tomasson can be reached at tomasson@fanhouse.com or on Twitter @christomasson