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Four NBA teams have agreed to a five-player trade that will send Trevor Ariza to the New Orleans Hornets and Darren Collison to the Indiana Pacers, two league sources said.
In the proposed deal, the Houston Rockets will send Ariza to the Hornets, who in turn will send Collison and James Posey to the Pacers.
The Pacers will send Troy Murphy to the New Jersey Nets. And the Nets will send Courtney Lee to the Rockets.
According to the sources, the Rockets, Hornets, Pacers and Nets have agreed to the details of the trade and are awaiting a trade call with the league this afternoon to make it official.
The Hornets didn't stop there. NBA front office sources told ESPN.com's Marc Stein that in a separate deal, the team agreed to send swingman Julian Wright to Toronto for Raptors guard Marco Belinelli. That deal, like the four-team trade, was also expected to be completed Wednesday.
The four-team deal could fill some long-term needs for the Hornets, Pacers and Nets, as well as provide needed salary relief for the Rockets.
For the Hornets, while moving Collison leaves the team without a credible backup for Chris Paul, the addition of Ariza gives them a young, athletic wing entering his prime.
The Hornets are hoping that the addition of Ariza addresses Paul's concerns about the team's commitment to winning by showing that they're willing to spend money to get better. Ariza signed a six year, $35 million deal with the Rockets last summer.
For the Pacers, landing Collison gives them the young starting point guard they've been looking for and adds another piece to a young core of players including Danny Granger, Roy Hibbert and promising rookies Paul George and Lance Stephenson.
The Pacers did take on the last two years and $13 million of Posey's contract, but the deal also sliced another $4 million off the team's overall payroll.
In Murphy, the Nets get the veteran big man that new coach Avery Johnson has been coveting. Murphy is also on the last year of his contract, which could make him an important trading chip for the Nets at the 2011 trade deadline.
For the Rockets, the move is basically a large salary dump. This summer the Rockets spent a lot of cash signing Luis Scola, Kyle Lowry and Brad Miller to free agent contracts and their payroll ballooned. Before the trade, the team was bracing for a $8 million plus luxury tax hit. This deal saves them $28 million on the life of the contract and roughly $10 million (when you factor in luxury tax payments) this season.
Chad Ford covers the NBA and NBA Draft for ESPN Insider.
In the proposed deal, the Houston Rockets will send Ariza to the Hornets, who in turn will send Collison and James Posey to the Pacers.
The Pacers will send Troy Murphy to the New Jersey Nets. And the Nets will send Courtney Lee to the Rockets.
According to the sources, the Rockets, Hornets, Pacers and Nets have agreed to the details of the trade and are awaiting a trade call with the league this afternoon to make it official.
The Hornets didn't stop there. NBA front office sources told ESPN.com's Marc Stein that in a separate deal, the team agreed to send swingman Julian Wright to Toronto for Raptors guard Marco Belinelli. That deal, like the four-team trade, was also expected to be completed Wednesday.
The four-team deal could fill some long-term needs for the Hornets, Pacers and Nets, as well as provide needed salary relief for the Rockets.
For the Hornets, while moving Collison leaves the team without a credible backup for Chris Paul, the addition of Ariza gives them a young, athletic wing entering his prime.
The Hornets are hoping that the addition of Ariza addresses Paul's concerns about the team's commitment to winning by showing that they're willing to spend money to get better. Ariza signed a six year, $35 million deal with the Rockets last summer.
For the Pacers, landing Collison gives them the young starting point guard they've been looking for and adds another piece to a young core of players including Danny Granger, Roy Hibbert and promising rookies Paul George and Lance Stephenson.
The Pacers did take on the last two years and $13 million of Posey's contract, but the deal also sliced another $4 million off the team's overall payroll.
In Murphy, the Nets get the veteran big man that new coach Avery Johnson has been coveting. Murphy is also on the last year of his contract, which could make him an important trading chip for the Nets at the 2011 trade deadline.
For the Rockets, the move is basically a large salary dump. This summer the Rockets spent a lot of cash signing Luis Scola, Kyle Lowry and Brad Miller to free agent contracts and their payroll ballooned. Before the trade, the team was bracing for a $8 million plus luxury tax hit. This deal saves them $28 million on the life of the contract and roughly $10 million (when you factor in luxury tax payments) this season.
Chad Ford covers the NBA and NBA Draft for ESPN Insider.
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