The Nuggets apparently have recently tried to make trades for DeAndre Jordan, Antonio McDyess and Ben Wallace, but were unsuccessful with each pursuit.

RealGM Note: Denver is looking for a big that can play 15-25 minutes per night and provide insurance in case they incur an injury to Nene, Kenyon Martin or Chris Andersen.

Skyhook79 wrote: Did Amare and Shaq make the Playoffs last year? Thats what I thought.

2quik4u wrote:

The Nuggets apparently have recently tried to make trades for DeAndre Jordan, Antonio McDyess and Ben Wallace, but were unsuccessful with each pursuit.

RealGM Note: Denver is looking for a big that can play 15-25 minutes per night and provide insurance in case they incur an injury to Nene, Kenyon Martin or Chris Andersen.

http://realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/64726/20100215/nuggets_make_attempts_for_big_ben_mcdyess_jordan/


lol

LTrain23 wrote: Did anybody post Amar'es' stats with Shaq? That should debunk that myth that he can;t play with him.

This deal will put Cleveland over the top.

wildcats20 wrote: I'm not saying either way if he plays well or not with Shaq.

BUT do you honestly believe he's going to come out and say that Shaq and he play terrible together??? When he has the chance to move to a title contender???

sportswizuhrd wrote:

LTrain23 wrote: Did anybody post Amar'es' stats with Shaq? That should debunk that myth that he can;t play with him.

This deal will put Cleveland over the top.

http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/13287/can-amare-shaq-work-the-stats-back-up-stat

Cleveland Buck wrote: Hopefully these Maggette rumors are just bullshit, because I wouldn't take Maggette if they were giving him away.

The Cleveland Cavaliers' pursuit of Amare Stoudemire continues, but in case they can't land the Phoenix Suns' All-Star forward, they have begun talks with the Golden State Warriors about Corey Maggette.

Despite their league-high 13-game win streak, the Cavaliers are leaving no stone unturned in attempting to improve their team and bring the city it's first major sports league championship in 46 years.


Maggette
In addition to speaking to the Washington Wizards regarding Antawn Jamison and the Indiana Pacers regarding Troy Murphy, Cleveland is in discussions with the Warriors about Maggette, according to four sources with knowledge of the talks.

Stoudemire is far and away the Cavaliers first choice, and sources close to Stoudemire said a report Monday that he told Cleveland he doesn't want to play there is false.

Sources say the Cavaliers are willing to send Zydrunas Ilgauskas, J.J. Hickson, a first-round pick and another player (to make the deal work financially) to Phoenix for Stoudemire, but while the Suns mull over their options, Cleveland remains one of the most active teams in the league leading up to Thursday's trade deadline.

The Cavs might need a Plan B, as the Miami Heat are pushing hard to land Stoudemire as well, sources told ESPN.com's Marc Stein on Monday night.

It is not clear whether the Cavaliers' second-choice is Jamison or Maggette. The discussions with Golden State have centered around Cleveland sending Ilgauskas and his $11.5 million expiring contract to the Warriors for Maggette. Other players, perhaps Cleveland's Danny Green and Golden State's Devean George, would have to be added to make the deal work financially.

As is the case with all their potential trades, the Cavaliers hope their trading partner would waive Ilgauskas so he could re-sign with Cleveland 30 days later. But no such deal can be struck beforehand, per league rules. The Cavaliers' interest in Maggette, who is averaging 20.8 points per game for the Warriors, is somewhat surprising. While the 30-year-old small forward has long been regarded as one of the league's most gifted scorers, he has three years and nearly $31 million left on his contract and has been somewhat injury prone.

Maggette, who has a career scoring average of 16.6 points, has also only made the playoffs one time in his 11-year career with Orlando, the Los Angeles Clippers and the Warriors. That has led some to question Maggette's ability to help a team win, but the same questions dogged Jamal Crawford before he was traded to Atlanta last summer. Crawford, a former teammate of Maggette's in Golden State, has helped the Hawks become an Eastern Conference contender.

LeBron James is aware of Cleveland's interest in Maggette, and sources close to him say he believes he could help the Cavaliers. Maggette can play shooting guard as well as small forward, and while he's not a great outside shooter, the Cavaliers could at times play James and Maggette together on the frontline in a small lineup.

Chris Broussard covers the NBA for ESPN The Magazine.

Cleveland Buck wrote: I read it before. I just hope it is bullshit talk and Ferry isn't seriously considering it.

dm27 wrote: I just hope the cavs front office doesn't get desperate and do something stupid........like trade for maggette

wildcats20 wrote:

dm27 wrote: I just hope the cavs front office doesn't get desperate and do something stupid........like trade for maggette

I don't expect that to happen.

The Cavs DON'T have to make a move.

NBA Trade Rumors: Lakers-Blazers-Bulls Deal Collapses, Minnesota in Play
by John Haverford Member

If the Los Angeles Lakers are going to make a play for Chicago Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich, they will have to find another team to facilitate the deal for the versatile defender.

The Portland Trailblazers have decided against taking on the contract of guard Sasha Vujacic and reportedly have dropped negotiations.

Despite strong efforts by the Lakers front office to obtain Kirk Hinrich by sending out players Adam Morrison and Sasha Vujacic, the Lakers could not persuade neither the Bulls nor the Trailblazers to take on additional salary in Vujacic's contract, who will make $5.5 million throughout 2011.

The Bulls refused to receive any contracts that would jeopardize their summer cap space. Moreover, the general feeling communicated to Lakers management by the Portland Trailblazers was that they do not need the services of the Slovenian guard.

With trade negotiations between the Lakers and Bulls hitting a stalemate, the Lakers front office is likely to stand pat at this year's Feb. 18 trade deadline if they cannot find a third team to take on an unwanted contract. Lakers owner Jerry Buss is very reluctant to acquire a player that would place additional financial obligations to the luxury taxpaying, defending champion Lakers unless they can remove one of their long-term contracts in Walton or Vujacic.

With that being said, keep an eye out for the Minnesota Timberwolves. As reported by Yahoo Sports Adrian Wojnarowski, the Minnesota Timberwolves are in play for Chicago Bulls athletic forward Tyrus Thomas.

However, with Portland out of the picture, one source indicates that the Lakers plan on reaching out to Minnesota to assist in a three-team deal.

Should Minnesota be willing to facilitate a trade, the parameters, as proposed by Lakers management, would be as followed: The Los Angeles Lakers would receive guard Kirk Hinrich, the Minnesota Timberwolves would receive forward Tyrus Thomas and guard Sasha Vujacic, and the Chicago Bulls would receive the expiring contracts of Adam Morrison, Brian Cardinal, and Sasha Pavlovic, as well as draft considerations.

For Minnesota, Timberwolves general manager David Kahn has long coveted the lanky, athletic forward Thomas and feels the Bulls player would be a solid addition to the Timberwolves' core.

In addition, former Lakers assistant coach and current Timberwolves head coach Kurt Rambis has had prior experience with Lakers guard Sasha Vujacic, and would likely use the Slovenian guard as Corey Brewer's backup in Minnesota's triangle offense. Vujacic would also be called upon to help the younger guards further assimilate the triangle offense.

But most importantly, it is agreed that the Timberwolves could utilize the future expiring contract of Sasha Vujacic at next year's 2011 trade deadline to bring in more talent.

Source: Camby dealt to Blazers

ESPN.com news services
Two struggling teams looked to each other for help on Monday.

The Los Angeles Clippers agreed to trade Marcus Camby to the Portland Trail Blazers for Travis Outlaw and Steve Blake, a source close to the situation told ESPN The Magazine's Ric Bucher.

The 35-year-old Camby is second in the league in rebounding this season at 12.1 boards per game, to go along with 7.7 points. The Blazers have had a hole in the middle of their lineup since Gred Oden went down with a knee injury in December.

The 6-foot-9 Outlaw is averaging 9.9 points and 3.5 rebounds per game in his seventh season with Portland. Blake, a 6-3 guard, is putting up 7.6 points and 4.0 assists per game. He's coming off a 20-point, 12-assist game in a win over the Suns before the All-Star break.