The clock is ticking toward the NBA trading deadline at 1 p.m. Mountain time. Nuggets officials, as of late Thursday morning, continued to work the phones and are trying to decide whether or not to deal Linas Kleiza, the affordable young forward, to Sacramento for veteran Ron Artest.
Sources close to the Nuggets say it’s becoming increasingly unlikely they’ll make that move. As reported by the Denver Post today, a source close to Artest felt that it would be unlikely for Sacramento to trade Artest without receiving Kleiza.
The Nuggets, according to sources close to the team, are also having ongoing talks with the New York Knicks about forward Zach Randolph, who has a maximum contract, which could be a deterrent in completing a deal.
Denver has had discussions about a deal with Seattle to acquire backup guard Delonte West, although a representative for West said late Thursday morning he had not heard of anything ready to happen.
In another development, it’s been learned the Nuggets are in talks with Miami to potentially acquire players with expiring contracts, notably guard Jason Williams and forward Ricky Davis. Such a deal could possibly involve Nene, who has a long term contract.
Benjamin Hochman: 303-954-1294 or bhochman@denverpost.com
