Mav Trade Jamison to Wizards for Laettner, Stackhouse and the #5 pick
The Dallas Mavericks, while still hoping to convince the Los Angeles Lakers to send them Shaquille O'Neal, have completed a trade on the eve of the NBA draft that could have additional significance, ESPN.com has learned.
The Mavericks, according to league sources, have acquired the No. 5 overall pick in Thursday's draft from Washington as part of a package that features Antawn Jamison, the newly minted Sixth Man of the Year, as the prize catch for the Wizards.
ESPN's David Aldridge reports that the Wizards also will send Christian Laettner and Jerry Stackhouse to the Mavericks in the deal.
Sources say the Mavericks hope to use the No. 5 pick to sweeten the package they can offer the Lakers in exchange for the disgruntled O'Neal. It is also possible, sources say, that the Mavericks will pursue additional trades that include Laettner and/or Stackhouse.
It is not known when the trade will be announced.
ESPN.com reported late Tuesday that, according to Lakers sources, L.A. refuses to deal O'Neal to their Western Conference rival unless Dallas makes Dirk Nowitzki available. Mavericks sources maintain that Nowitzki remains off-limits, but the prospect of adding the No. 5 pick to a package that could include point guard Steve Nash (via sign-and-trade), Antoine Walker (who has just one year left on his contract) and promising rookie Josh Howard should at least get the Lakers' attention.
If the Lakers do eventually consent to trade O'Neal, in the wake of Shaq's demand for a trade last week, their goal would be injecting their roster with quality youth and depth to surround Kobe Bryant.
If the Mavericks can't swing a subsequent deal for the No. 5 pick, they will undoubtedly weigh the merits of drafting Pavel Podkolzine, the 7-foot-5 center from Russia.
Jamison's appeal to the Wizards is obvious. Instead of gambling on more youth at No. 5 with an inexperienced roster already, Washington gets an established frontcourt scorer who should contend for an All-Star spot in the East after accepting a bench role without complaint in Dallas.
Suns trade #7 pick for a Future #1 and Chicago's #2 this year
The Phoenix Suns have traded away the No. 7 pick in Thursday's draft to the Chicago Bulls, ESPN.com Insider has learned. In the process, the Suns may be out of the running for Tracy McGrady.
The trade, which won't be announced until Thursday, will give the Suns one of the Bulls' second-round picks (No. 31), a future first-rounder and an undisclosed sum of cash in return for the pick.
The move is no surprise on one front -- the Bulls have been looking for a second lottery pick. They have had an infatuation with Oregon's Luke Jackson for some time and sources believe Chicago likely will select Jackson with the No. 7 pick.
For the Suns, the move is more surprising. Earlier on Wednesday, the Suns were dangling the No. 7 pick, along with Shawn Marion, to the Magic in an effort to land McGrady.
However, after the Magic announced that they wouldn't be making a T-Mac trade until after the draft, the Suns grew impatient and agreed to the swap with the Bulls.
While Suns sources wouldn't characterize the talks with the Magic as "dead," they claim that they are no longer in active discussions with the Magic for McGrady.
Why would the Suns give up a high lottery pick for only a future first-rounder? The Suns didn't feel that any player left at No. 7 would help their team immediately. They also wanted the extra cap space. By getting the No. 7 pick off their books, the Suns are suddenly looking at $16.3 million in cap space this summer to make a run at free agents.
The Bulls also included minimum protections on their future first. The pick is protected in the top three in 2005 and as the top pick in 2006.
