He's not going to the Lakers. They're not trading him to the west, and they're certainly not taking on high-priced lengthy contracts of guys like Bynum or Odom when they'll be in rebuilding mode.
The only teams that would actually trade for him without an extension in place are Houston and Dallas, but again, Denver doesn't want to take on contracts (Kevin Martin?) or trade within their conference.
New Jersey has the best offer, but the Nuggets aren't sold on Favors and Melo has clearly said he won't sign an extension -- or the trade would have already happened.
I think New York turns Anthony Randolph into a 1st Round pick and is able to get Denver to bite on their best offer of Gallo + Curry's expiring + 1st Round pick + future 1st Round pick, although it's still a lesser offer than New Jersey's. But it'll be the only actual trade they'll be capable of making, since Melo truly has all of the leverage in deciding where he wants to go.
Melo's actual best bet in regards to long-term success, I think, would be to sign with the Knicks as a Free Agent over the summer and allow them to keep their roster and draft picks intact, but that would cost him potentially $20 Million.
