WHITE EARNS PAT ON BACK HARVEY TO FORMER TEAMMATE: IT'LL ALL WORK OUT FOR BEST.(Sports)

Byline: Aaron J. Lopez

ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS

Hang in there, Rodney White. There are plenty of other fish in the NBA sea.

That essentially was the message Orlando Magic forward -Donnell Harvey delivered to his former Denver Nuggets teammate before their game Friday night.

White learned two weeks ago that the Nuggets declined to pick up his $2.5 million option for the 2004-05 season. Harvey received the same news from Denver a year earlier.

In both instances, Nuggets officials said the decision was not a reflection on the player and insisted they would be interested in him at the end of the season.

``I have a feeling of what he's going through, with them telling him that they really want him here,'' Harvey said. ``They might be making moves over your head, but the only thing I can say for Rodney's sake is to keep working and stay focused. There are 28 more teams out there.''

White, the ninth overall pick of the 2001 draft, actually will have 29 other teams to choose from when he becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer. The expansion Charlotte Bobcats begin play in 2004.

As for Harvey, he and the Nuggets parted company without so much as a token negotiation.

``There were no hard feelings,'' Harvey said. ``I knew they were putting something together (in Denver), but I had a feeling I wasn't going to be a part of it.''

PAY CUT: A 58 percent pay cut would reduce most people to tears. It was a source of relief for former Nuggets forward Juwan Howard.

Though not exactly slumming it at $38 million over the next six years in Orlando, Howard no longer carries the stigma of the seven-year, $105 million deal he signed with the Washington Wizards in 1996.

Despite averaging 17.9 points and 7.5 rebounds in his first nine NBA seasons, Howard's salary - he made $20.6 million last season - made him an easy target for opposing fans and the national media.

``It's nice now that now my contract will not overshadow my ability to play this game,'' Howard said. ``My talent and my play out there on the court has been overshadowed by my contract since Day 1.

``I never got the benefit of the doubt. I never got the recognition I felt I deserved, but I never had a problem with going out and proving myself. I will continue to go out and prove myself day after day.''

PACE-SETTERS: Still think the Nuggets aren't running enough? Take a look at the NBA statistics.

Entering Friday night's game against Orlando, Denver led the league in fast-break points at 19.3 a game - up eight points from a season ago - and 21.7 percent of their offense came in transition.

``It's a pretty high percentage for us,'' coach Jeff Bzdelik said. ``If we could rebound better, we'd get even more.''

Through Thursday, the Nuggets ranked 27th in defensive rebounding percentage.

ETC: Melo Maniacs have a new source for information about Nuggets rookie Carmelo -Anthony. His new Web site - CarmeloAnthony.net - officially launched Friday, providing fans with an opportunity to ask questions and keep up with the latest Melo news . . . The Pepsi Center public-address announcer drew Bzdelik's wrath after botching Denver's starting lineup. ``Get it right!'' Bzdelik shouted after the announcer introduced Voshon Lenard instead of Jon Barry. A few seconds later, White mistakenly was introduced instead of Marcus Camby, drawing confused looks from the Nuggets bench and another evil eye from Bzdelik. Camby played despite nursing a sore left knee and Leonard returned after missing two games with a sprained left ankle.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony, right, drives past Orlando Magic forward Drew Gooden during the first quarter Friday. The stellar rookie has opened his first Web site - CarmeloAnthony.net - for admirers to access on the Internet. JACK DEMPSEY / ASSOCIATED PRESS