Draft Watch: Trade talk dominating on draft day

Originally Published: June 26, 2008

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By Chad Ford
ESPN.com
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Updated: June 26 -- 10:52 p.m. ET

The Miami Heat have acquired the draft rights to Mario Chalmers from the Minnesota Timberwolves for cash and two second-round picks, according to a league source.

The Detroit Pistons have verbally agreed to trade the draft rights to D.J. White to the Seattle SuperSonics for two of the Sonics' second-round picks -- the 32nd and 46th picks -- according to a Pistons source.

The Portland Trail Blazers have verbally agreed to a deal that will send the rights to Brandon Rush, Jarrett Jack and Josh McRoberts to the Indiana Pacers for the rights to Jerryd Bayless and Ike Diogu, according to a Blazers source.

The Spurs sent an e-mail to every team in the league at 3:30 p.m. saying that they were willing to move the 26th pick. The e-mail asked league executives to "E-mail us your interest and your offers to 26."

That's the first time I've heard of something like this in all of my years covering the draft. Make your pitch to the Spurs below in our comments section.

The Clippers and Sonics had an agreement in place to swap the No. 4 and No. 7 picks, with the Clippers sending their 2009 pick to Seattle. But disagreements over the details have apparently ended discussions for now.

If they had acquired the No. 4 pick, the Clippers were expected to take Eric Gordon of Indiana, with the Sonics looking at Brook Lopez and Jerryd Bayless at No. 7. But now the deal appears to be off.

The Bucks and Nets have also done a deal that could have a big impact on the draft. The Bucks are sending Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons to New Jersey for Richard Jefferson, according to ESPN.com's Marc Stein.

That means the Bucks may be less likely to take Joe Alexander at No. 8. He's a small forward like Jefferson and they may decide to go with a guard now -- either Russell Westbrook or Jerryd Bayless.

The Nets have the No. 10 and No. 21 picks. Look for them to make a run at Joe Alexander if he's on the board at 10. He'd be the perfect complement to Yi and Sean Williams in the frontcourt.

The Bucks have been eyeing Alexander and still could take him at No. 8. However, sources say it's more likely that they'll add another guard. My guess is that Russell Westbrook doesn't slide past the Bucks unless Kevin Love somehow drops to them at 8.

The Wizards have been talking with several teams about trading down in the draft.

Talks with the Pistons last night ended up going nowhere.

The latest has them talking about a swap with the Rockets that would send No. 18 to Houston and No. 25 to Washington.

The Memphis Grizzlies like Eric Gordon and Kevin Love. But it is looking more and more likely that they will trade away their No. 5 pick on draft night.

The New Jersey Nets and the Grizzlies are in talks about a trade that would send the No. 5 pick to New Jersey for the No. 10 pick and a future first-round pick.

If the Nets move to No. 5, it appears they are looking at two guys who might not be on the board at No. 10: Danilo Gallinari and Love.

The Nets are big fans of both players and were hoping one of them would fall to No. 10. Gallinari would give the Nets a sharpshooter with great passing skills and good experience in Europe.

However, Love is more NBA ready. He has great strength and skills, although some teams worry about his lack of size.

It's unclear what the Grizzlies are thinking if they move to No. 10. They need a power forward and could look at LSU's Anthony Randolph. They also could scoop up Gallinari if the Nets pass on him at No. 5 and the New York Knicks pass on him at No. 6.

However, the Nets aren't alone in their pursuit of the Grizzlies' pick. The Portland Trail Blazers also have been talking to the Grizzlies about a deal that would send the No. 5 pick to Portland. The Blazers have a number of assets, including Travis Outlaw, that they could throw the Grizzlies' way. The Blazers covet Russell Westbrook and Love.

The other team that seems to be hot for the Grizzlies' pick is the Knicks. Earlier in the week, they discussed a deal that would send David Lee and Malik Rose to the Grizzlies in return for the No. 5 pick and Brian Cardinal. However, Lee's agent might have scuttled that deal for the Knicks when he told Memphis that Lee, who will become a restricted free agent next summer, has no interest in signing a long-term deal in Memphis. The Knicks were trying to pick up multiple lottery picks to jump-start the rebuilding process.

Chad Ford covers the NBA for ESPN Insider.