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nykfan4ever
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2/15/2002  6:52 PM
can somebody post the insider or the insider rumor central?
AUTOADVERT
martin
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2/15/2002  7:32 PM
2 articles that sum up the NBA trade rumors:

Trade rumors: Lots of talk, little action
by Chad Ford

Lots of talk, little action. The phrase can apply to many things, but with less than a week before the trade deadline -- are we in for another all-talk, no-action February?

The signs weren't any more encouraging Thursday. Yes, there is a lot of talk. No, there's nothing really close to being consummated. At least that's the feeling of numerous GM's and league personnel who've talked to Insider.

Of course, all it takes is one big trade, and the flood gates will open. As Pistons director of player personnel John Hammonds points out, trade talks don't force a team's hand -- actual trades do.

"It [trade rumors] really doesn't affect us right now," Hammond told the Detroit News. "Maybe a major move within our conference could start a domino effect that could maybe force you to do something down the line. But as far as our immediate thinking, nothing has changed."

One thing teams are figuring out is that it might be in their best interest to bench their trade bait for the next week. The Warriors have been employing that strategy all year with Marc Jackson.

For the second day in a row, a major player on the trading block went down with a serious injury. Wednesday, Terrell Brandon was lost for the season, basically ending any discussions the Timberwolves were having with the Nuggets concerning Nick Van Exel. Thursday, the Sonics' Vin Baker dislocated three toes and is now out indefinitely.

Baker's injury could effectively limit the options of the Pacers, Knicks and several other Eastern Conference teams desperately looking for a low-post presence. With Baker showing signs of regaining his All-Star form, the Sonics had their best possible opportunity to ship out the big man's big deal. Maybe the Knicks and Sonics could swap their injury prone big men.

So is it any surprise that Van Exel missed Thursday night's game with a "sore elbow"? Or that Sam Cassell missed Thursday night's game with a "sprained toe"? Or that Charles Oakley keeps talking about helping a contender despite the fact that he hasn't played in some time? Coincidence? Sure. But you think any of these guys will fail their physicals if they're traded?

Speaking of talking, Oakley is doing his best to talk his way out of Chicago. Obviously bolstered by the idea of playing in Indiana if the Bulls pull the trigger on a trade that would sent Oakley, Brad Miller and Ron Artest to Indiana in return for Jalen Rose, Travis Best and Bruno Sundov, Oakley decided to lay it on Thursday.

"Even though things look good on the court, there's still a lot of unnecessary nonsense going on," Oakley told the Chicago Sun Times. "There are a lot of issues. It's just management, period. I thought some things would change, and some things have changed. But we have a young team, and you want to show a young team you can be the best. You don't want a young team second-guessing management, and there's a lot of guys second-guessing this management. And that's not good."

Great, just what the Bulls needed. Oakley may be cutting his own throat if you listen to Bulls operations chief Jerry Krause. "You don't talk your way out of here," Krause said. "Mr. [Jerry] Reinsdorf has some pretty strong feelings about talking your way out of here, and so do I."

Still, no one doubts they'd love to dump Oakley. But if they did do the trade, would they be getting another malcontent in return in Rose?

According to the Indianapolis Star, Rose doesn't want to be traded to Chicago. "If it happens, it happens. But it's not something I'm looking forward to happening."

Rose said the possibility of being traded to the lowly Bulls gives him anxiety. "Especially if you don't want to be moved, and I definitely don't want to be moved."

Does anyone want to be traded to the Bulls? Anyone at all?

Probably not Van Exel, not that the Bulls have any interest anyway. In fact, it appears that Nuggets GM Kiki Vandeweghe is still having a hard time finding a taker.

"I've been talking to a few people, but there is still nothing pending," Vandeweghe told the Denver Post.

One of those teams the Nuggets are talking to is the Knicks. Of course, the Knicks are talking to anyone willing to return their phone calls. They would've taken Baker, would settle for Erick Dampier or Jackson, but their first love is still Raef LaFrentz.

According to the N.Y. Post, a three-team deal involving the Knicks, Nuggets and Warriors is still a possibility with Marcus Camby being shipped to Golden State.

Of course, with one week to go, and unlimited cell phone minutes, just about anything is possibility . . . including nothing happening at all.

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martin
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2/15/2002  7:32 PM
here's the second article.


Trade rumors: Finley, Mohammed caught in the madness

Mark Cuban has been unusually quiet as of late, which has plenty GMs wondering what he's up to. The few who have talked with him claim he's still searching for the missing piece of the puzzle and is using Juwan Howard as bait.

Who does he want? You name it. Raef LaFrentz, Jalen Rose, Karl Malone, Vin Baker, Marc Jackson . . .everyone I talked to seems to think Cuban will try something, but there is nothing even close to concrete out there.

He won't get far on that front if he's dangling Howard, which has led to speculation that Michael Finley's days in Dallas may be over. Moving Finley won't be easy, he's a base-year player and the Mavs want to avoid the reputation (trust me, players give teams reps) of signing guys to long-term deals and then shipping them out to places they don't want to play. Though with Cuban, nothing is impossible; don't hold your breath that the Mavs break up their big three. . .

One of the persistent rumors making the rounds has the Hawks shopping Nazr Mohammed around the league in hopes of landing a true point guard. They've talked with Indiana about Travis Best, the Sixers about Eric Snow and the Clippers about Jeff McInnis. One point guard they aren't interested in . . . Nick Van Exel. Said a Hawks source, "We had enough of Isaiah Rider to last us a decade." . . .

Next time the Jazz think of trading Bryon Russell, or anyone else for that matter, they better check with Malone first.

Here's his reaction to Thursday's Boston Herald report that the Celtics and Jazz were talking about a swap that would send Russell to the Celtics in return for Walter McCarty, Randy Brown and a No. 1 pick.

"Any trade that happens on this team has to go through me," Malone told the Deseret News. "I'll go out on a limb and say that. If people don't like that, they can come and see me."

Jazz coach Jerry Sloan would also like to be consulted on the trade talks. "I'm not looking to trade Bryon," he said. "He's one of the guys on this team I have feelings for, who's been with us through some tough times. We're not going to give him away, even though some would like us to give him away." . . .

With the Nets hitting an brief, unexpected swoon, GM Rod Thorn said the team would continue to pursue another big man. "If we were to do anything, it would probably be along the lines of trying to get a little bit stronger," Thorn told the New York Times. "I don't anticipate anything, but you know me, I never rule out anything. If we did anything, it'd be along the lines of acquiring a big body. But we're happy with our team." . . .

T-Wolves GM Kevin McHale again disputed printed reports that the Wolves were close to swapping Terrell Brandon for Van Exel before Brandon went down with a season-ending injury.

"We were not close to having a deal — whoever said that is totally erroneous," McHale told the St. Paul Pioneer Press. "And it's not fair to Kiki (Vandeweghe, the Nuggets' general manager) and those other guys out there, either. Kiki's going to do what's best for his team. He talks to everybody. We weren't even close to having a deal; they're not going to make a decision out there until next week. The rest, everything else, is just a bunch of (speculation)." . . .

Coach Larry Brown said the Sixers were not actively pursuing a deal. GM Billy King indicated there was "a possibility" they might do something minor, perhaps adding a player to their substitution rotation, the Philadelphia Daily News reported . . .
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VG
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2/15/2002  9:42 PM
Thanks man!
nykfan4ever
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2/17/2002  12:20 PM
thanks!
Knixkik
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2/17/2002  1:08 PM
Thanks a lot!
insider....

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