It is considered a serious longshot, but the Nets have contacted the Lakers about the possibility of bringing Shaquille O'Neal close to his native Newark. A league source said yesterday that the Nets joined about four-fifths of the league in the O'Neal sweepstakes but that talks are not serious and that the chance of landing O'Neal is likely unrealistic. The Nets could offer a package speculated to be Kenyon Martin (a restricted free agent who would have to agree to a sign-and-trade), Kerry Kittles ($10 million), Rodney Rogers ($3.3 million), Alonzo Mourning (on the payroll for $5.4 million) and 2002 first-round pick Nenad Krstic. But the Lakers would likely want Martin, Richard Jefferson and Jason Kidd. The Pacers understand this is the time to take the final step, to make the move (or moves) that will get them to the NBA Finals. At this point, the big-name guys are the longest of long shots, even no shots. If the Tracy McGrady deal fell apart, Bird said he would continue to chase him, but that isn't likely to happen. It's a shame about McGrady, really, because he would have been a perfect fit for the Pacers, and the Pacers, on paper, seemed to have the most to offer. Al Harrington. Jonathan Bender. Even Ron Artest, who started to regress at season's end and never will have more value than he has now. "My personal opinion is, they might have gotten a better deal from us," Bird said. Although Michigan State coach Tom Izzo was approached by the Toronto Raptors, don't look for him to end up there. But don't count out the Los Angeles Lakers. The Cavaliers are one of the most active teams in the league in trying to make a deal heading into the draft and might be looking at adding a significant player to their roster. According to sources, the team is in heavy talks with the Indiana Pacers about a deal involving the draft pick. The Cavaliers would have to add another player or two to the package, but the Pacers are believed to be shopping forwards Ron Artest and Al Harrington among others. Other trading partners might be the Dallas Mavericks or the New Jersey Nets. The Mavericks are rumored to have interest in offering swingman Josh Howard for the No. 10 pick. Another source reports the Cavaliers might be interested in Nets shooting guard Kerry Kittles, who is about to enter the final year of his contract and is on the trading block. The Mavericks clearly are seeking to deal Antoine Walker, who is entering the last season of his contract. The New York Knicks have shown interest, perhaps for power forward Kurt Thomas, Dikembe Mutombo or other players. But even as the Houston Rockets appeared on the verge of acquiring Tracy McGrady on Tuesday night, Nelson said there isn't necessarily another superstar trade ready to happen with the Mavericks and O'Neal. "That's such a pie-in-the-sky deal at this point," he said. "I think it's fair to say that we're [chilling out]. We can't put a finger on when things will happen." Although the Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls are interested in trading for the Timberwolves' Wally Szczerbiak, Wolves coach Flip Saunders said Szczerbiak will remain in Minnesota. "Despite rumors, we're not going to trade Wally," Saunders said. The Pacers are desperately trying to unload Ron Artest, who suffered several meltdowns at the end of the playoffs. But if the Pacers were willing to offer Artest to the Knicks, that should raise red flags. Or as one NBA executive said yesterday, "Ron has a lot of talent but he's a ticking time-bomb." Phoenix, Portland, Miami and others are also believed to be interested in trading for Tracy McGrady, an all-star in all four of his seasons in Orlando. Magic general manager John Weisbrod refused comment for a second consecutive day Tuesday. But over the weekend he stressed that he would not accept a bad deal. Speculation about a Vince Carter trade, from either the figment of the imagination of callers to talk radio shows or legitimate discussion between Rob Babcock and other NBA general managers, is going to continue for the foreseeable future. Some of it will be true, most of it will be unworkable under salary cap rules and it may never, ever come to pass It has been well documented that big-name players such as Dallas' Michael Finley and Boston's Paul Pierce can be had for the right price. But the Bulls, who have had discussions about both players, aren't close to trading for them. If the Bulls keep their pick, management is having internal discussions about the merits of Connecticut guard Ben Gordon, Duke forward Luol Deng, Stanford forward Josh Childress and Arizona guard Andre Iguodala. A week ago, Knicks President Isiah Thomas threatened to make life miserable for Joe Dumars and the Pistons. He indicated he would pull out all of the stops to sign free agent Rasheed Wallace. Well, Thomas is apparently waving the white flag now. In an article in the Newark Star-Ledger on Tuesday, Thomas all but gave his concession speech. As for the Bulls, talks have cooled, but are not over with the Pacers regarding Al Harrington. The Bulls also had preliminary talks with several teams about front-line starters. "There's a lot of interest in Al," Indiana general manager Larry Bird said Tuesday of Harrington. "We're not really shopping Al. I wish Al was happy here and everybody else was happy, but sometimes a change of scenery will do both teams some good." Rudy Tomjanovich met with Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak and owner Jerry Buss for about two hours Tuesday as the first coach interviewed to succeed Phil Jackson as Lakers coach and as the apparent front-runner. Kupchak said the Lakers would conduct other interviews and that the process could take several weeks. But Buss was scheduled to leave on a monthlong European vacation today, making Tomjanovich likely the only candidate that will meet with the owner. Tyronn Lue is the sort of on-the-ball defender Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy favors and has been a solid complement to stars (Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles and Michael Jordan in Washington). But he could opt out of his contract, worth $1.65 million next season. Lue's agent, Andy Miller, said he had not spoken in detail about whether Lue would opt out if traded to the Rockets because the deal was not complete. As of yesterday, Orlando was considering trading the No. 1 pick to Atlanta so that the Hawks can take Dwight Howard, the Atlanta prep star. He's 6-10, with a world of talent and upside. And his head is firmly planted on his shoulders. If the Magic doesn't move it, Howard also could end up in Orlando. Unlike Okafor, he isn't coming into the pros with questions concerning his back. With Gary Payton returning to the Lakers, guard Derek Fisher is expected to opt out of his contract this week and would also seem a good fit. "The Rockets are a great organization, and Van Gundy is a terrific coach," said Fisher's agent, Mark Bartlestein. "We have to get him opted out first. But it's certainly a place any player would look at." Isiah Thomas denied a rumor making the rounds yesterday, which involved the Knicks in a three-way deal that would land them yet another poison-pill contract, this one belonging to undersized San Antonio power forward Malik Rose. Rose has just completed the second season of a mammoth, Shandon Anderson-sized albatross (seven years, $42 million), and he spent most of it on the bench as the Spurs' 10th man. The representatives for Houston Rockets guard Steve Francis tried yesterday to prevent him from being traded to the Orlando Magic by seeking a third team willing to take part in a blockbuster NBA deal, a source close to the talks said. Although Dwyane Wade has never complained about playing point guard, an associate said Wade prefers shooting guard long-term. Former University of Minnesota freshman Kris Humphries will be picked No. 16 overall by the Utah Jazz in Thursday's NBA draft, according to the credible Monter Draft Report. The Phoenix Suns will take Wisconsin's Devin Harris with the No. 7 pick. Shortly after denying he was involved in the Los Angeles Lakers' coaching search, Heat President Pat Riley held discussions with the team he led to four NBA championships in the 1980s. Despite those conversations, word Tuesday from within the Lakers' organization was that Riley no longer was part of the pursuit of a replacement for Phil Jackson. Danny Ainge likes Sebastian Telfair, the 5-foot-11 New York high schooler who has drawn interest as high in the draft as Portland at No. 13. ``He's a terrific player,'' Ainge said. ``He's absolutely going to be a first-round pick. Someone is definitely going to take him that high.'' He also likes Jameer Nelson, the St. Joseph's All-American who worked out for the Celtics last year as a college junior before returning to school for his senior season. Ainge remains intrigued by Nelson, though the guard's popularity has grown around the league. ``We've tried to get him in for a workout, but he hasn't come,'' said Ainge, with a familiar lament. The chief topic of conversation when the 76ers conducted another round of pre-NBA draft workouts yesterday was not who showed up for the session, but who didn't. Andris Biedrins, a 6-foot-11, 240-pound prospect from Latvia, passed on the Sixers' invitation to join guards Kirk Snyder of Nevada and J.R. Smith of St. Benedict Prep in North Jersey at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Biedrins, 18, a tall European player who, unlike some other tall European players, is not afraid to bang inside and play defense, is considered in some mock drafts to be the Sixers' pick at No. 9 in tomorrow's amateur draft, especially given the team's need for inside power players. With Kelvin Cato gone, the Rockets will also likely need another backup center. Free agent Brian Skinner, the former Baylor center who as a Milwaukee Buck just enjoyed his best NBA season, is an athletic power forward/center who can play in the middle and would bring the physical style the Rockets have hoped to add. Derek Fisher is a longshot (for the Rockets) just because he might be good enough to get a maxed out deal. I agree he'd be a terrific addition. I think the trade is a good one because in Yao and McGrady you have a really tough inside-outside combination to defend. Now the job is to fill in around them. The bench still needs work. It's probably won't all be completed in one offseason. Former Bulls guard Jay Williams spoke with the Chicago media by phone and reiterated his intentions to play NBA ball again, preferably for the Bulls. ''I don't have any timetable for when I will play again,'' he said. ''I'm playing some one-on-one, shooting the ball and doing a little jogging. I'm not running full sprints or dunking on people yet. I wish I could. That comes later. But I'm definitely making huge steps compared to where I was last year. The big thing is trusting in the leg again. I'm finally starting to believe in it again.'' Damon Jones' stock on the open market should be considerably higher after a strong season with the Bucks. With just a second-round pick at their disposal for the NBA draft on Thursday, the Bucks are shopping that pick in hopes of landing a veteran they figure would make their roster. Antoine Walker goes back to Dallas and the chance of a deal is slim, as owner Mark Cuban doesn't think much of the Knick roster and is not even enthralled with Kurt Thomas. That's Don Nelson's guy. Although his playing time was sparse last season as a rookie in Orlando, Zaza Pachulia wasn't thrilled about being selected Tuesday by the Charlotte Bobcats in the expansion draft. Pachulia, a 6-foot-11 center from the country of Georgia, is expected to be part of another deal the Bobcats will announce in the next couple days. "He's not a happy camper right now," said Marc Fleisher, Pachulia's agent, Tuesday night. "He liked it in Orlando, and the odds now are that he won't be staying in Charlotte. We don't know where he's going." Jameer Nelson is the kind of player NBA general managers and coaches say they want. He has four years of college experience, was the consensus college player of the year and won the Wooden and Naismith awards after Saint Joseph's held the No. 1 ranking for much of the season and reached the NCAA tournament's round of eight. Yet, Nelson is projected as no better than a mid-to-late first-round pick in Thursday's NBA draft. Less-experienced teenagers, high school seniors or college freshmen and sophomores whose basketball r?sum?s lack Nelson's credentials, likely will be picked ahead of him. Michigan?s senators collected two tickets to Disneyland and a crate of avocados from California?s senators, who had to pay up after the Pistons beat the Lakers in the Finals. California Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer also gave bottles of California wine, Mickey Mouse ears and six movie DVDs to fellow Democratic Sens. Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow. Among the DVDs was ?Grosse Pointe Blank,? which takes place in suburban Detroit. Hawks GM Billy Knight says players with "length" make better rebounders and defenders. A classic example of a long defender is Detroit's Tayshaun Prince. He is 6-9, but he made life miserable for Kobe Bryant in the NBA Finals because he was able to block and alter shots with his 7-4 wingspan. Players with length challenge defenses because they can make passes around people and shoot over them, Knight said. According to Forbes magazine, LeBron James ranked 16th among the 50 highest-paid athletes in the world last year. The magazine said he made $21.1 million, compared to $80.3 million for No. 1 Tiger Woods. Amare Stoudemire might owe an agent more than $200,000, but he doesn't have to repay it. At least, not yet. Judge David S. Doty of the U.S. District Court of Minnesota set aside a default judgment against Stoudemire, leaving in doubt whether Minneapolis agent John Wolf will get back the money he loaned the player during his senior season at Cypress Creek High School. In February, Doty ordered Stoudemire to repay Wolf $196,069.28 in cash advances the agent gave him from 2001-03. Wolf and Big League Sports Services Inc. filed a list of payments totaling $206,069.28. The ruling came in large part because Stoudemire, who plays for the Phoenix Suns, did not respond to the civil suit until after Doty's decision -- as the Suns started taking money out of his paycheck and putting it in escrow. The Hawks won't borrow the reduce-ticket-prices page from Arthur Blank's new-owner playbook. The team said Tuesday that it won't change individual-game ticket prices next season. The Hawks also restructured season-ticket discounts so that some buyers will pay slightly more and a small number of buyers slightly less than last season. A memorial sculpture of Wilt Chamberlain will be unveiled at 4 p.m. on Monday at the Wachovia Center. Created by world-renowned sculptor Omri Amrany, the statue was commissioned by the Wilt Chamberlain Memorial Fund and will be the first commemorative statue outside of the Center. The statue stands 18-feet and weighs close to three tons. A quote at the base of Wilt's statue reads: "The worth of a man is measured by the size of his heart." BENMALLER.com
So much going on right now.. But I hope Cavs get Al Harington and maybe Ron Artest, that would complete are team.
