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Mark Stein

'Sheed to Big D? With talks between the Blazers and Knicks "cooling," to quote one source, the hottest rumor over the weekend had the Mavericks as the leading contender to land Rasheed Wallace in the "Who wants to win a head case" sweepstakes. The rumors, if you believe them, have the Mavericks offering Antawn Jamison, among others, in return for 'Sheed.
The problem is, Mavericks owners Mark Cuban is vehemently denying that the Mavs are doing anything or shopping anyone.

"They'd have to make us a sweetheart deal that we couldn't say no to," Cuban told the Fort Worth Star Telegram when asked about the deal with the Blazers. "No reason to change unless there's something that's a great deal."

"We haven't been shopping anybody," Cuban said. "We haven't been out searching for anything. I've said it again and again and again: It's just about us trying to turn the corner. We'd all hoped that things would click better beforehand. It's not a talent issue; it's a coming-together issue."

He's also, by the way, no longer interested in the Knicks' Kurt Thomas.

"Kurt is a great defender, but defending in the West is completely different from defending in the East," Cuban told the N.Y. Post. "We have to put it into context of what happens in the Western Conference. I'm not knocking Kurt Thomas, but we're not going to make a change just to make a change. Just swapping parts and comparable pieces doesn't help us."

Fine. Just remember that Cuban has said similar things the past few trade deadlines and offseasons only to make huge deals. Every time, Cuban's response is the same. Essentially, "They made us a sweetheart deal that we couldn't say no to." So the question you have to ask yourself is this: Is Rasheed for Jamison and spare parts a "sweetheart" deal for the Mavericks?

Probably not. Jamison has been great coming off the bench in Dallas. No telling how 'Sheed would respond to that. Considering the Mavs' chemistry problems this season, why add another, even more volatile element into the mix. Wallace isn't the tough, blue collar defender and rebounder the Mavs need. Why take the risk?

So if the Knicks aren't getting Sheed and the Mavs aren't going to pull the trigger, who is?

Ummmm ... that's a tough one. Unless Blazers GM John Nash has altered his criteria for trading 'Sheed (young all-star or expiring contracts and prospects), it's tough to see how he's going to pull off a deal. The Hawks, as we noted above, may be the best bet, but given how much the team is in flux, don't bet on it.

Despite all that, Nash claims it's "likely" he'll make a move before the Feb. 19 trade deadline.

"We are making an effort, and we have made it known to people that we are willing to deal," Nash told the Oregonian. "But we have also made it known that we are not conducting a fire sale. I expect that as we get closer to the deadline, teams will make their best offer. It's my experience that the best and final offers are made in the final moments."

While Nash wouldn't divulge exactly who he's going to trade, it's pretty clear Wallace is the target.

"What we are doing is exploring all options involving all players," Nash said. "Usually, there is more interest in your best players, so it's logical to assume that there has been more interest in Rasheed than, say, Ruben Boumtje Boumtje.

"But because of the size of Rasheed's contract ($17 million), his is not an easy deal to make. It would probably have to involve a multiplayer deal. Look, we don't want to trade Rasheed if it's a bad trade. We don't want to trade any player if it's a bad trade. But we have not made a decision on what we intend to do in the future (with Wallace). But obviously, we are going to have to make that decision in the not too distant future."