Almost every player involved in the Indiana Pacers' eight-man trade with the Golden State Warriors is likely to welcome the change of scenery.
The Pacers yesterday traded Al Harrington and Stephen Jackson to Golden State for forwards Troy Murphy and Mike Dunleavy in a large, bold deal to shake up two struggling teams.
The Pacers also sent guard Sarunas Jasikevicius and forward Josh Powell to the Warriors, who gave up forward Ike Diogu and guard Keith McLeod.
"This is a situation where both teams feel good about what's going to happen," said Chris Mullin, the Warriors' vice president and a former player for both teams. "They're all key components. All these guys that are in the deal, they're going to have good roles with their new teams."
Murphy, Dunleavy and Diogu had been reduced to high-priced backups for failing to produce more in new coach Don Nelson's offensive-minded system. Murphy and Dunleavy have hefty contracts that allowed Golden State to finish the deal with significantly less financial impact than the Pacers.
Harrington, the most accomplished player in the trade, struggled to get comfortable alongside Jermaine O'Neal in his first season back with Indiana. Meanwhile, Jackson has been dogged by legal troubles and attitude problems all season, embarrassing the club with an early-season fight at a strip club and a spat with coach Rick Carlisle last month.
"I think he was in a difficult environment for him," Pacers CEO Donnie Walsh said of Jackson, who averaged 14.1 points this season.
The deal left injury-plagued Golden State with only six healthy players for last night's game against the Clippers - two fewer than the NBA minimum required to avoid forfeiting a game. The Warriors quickly signed NBA Development League forward Renaldo Major to a 10-day contract and planned to suit up injured center Adonal Foyle to avoid the forfeit.
Noteworthy
* Joumana Kidd, the estranged wife of Nets guard Jason Kidd, was a busybody who snooped on her husband - and sometimes on his teammates, sources told the New York Daily News. She also crashed marketing meetings, demanded front-row seats, and pestered management "about things like the players having to clear snow off of their cars," an insider in Kidd's camp said.
* Heat center Shaquille O'Neal, coming back from Novemver knee surgery, went through a full practice and could play tonight against visiting Indiana.
In games last night:
* At Auburn Hills, Mich., Deron Williams had 31 points and 10 assists and made a three-pointer with 44 seconds left to help the Utah Jazz beat the Pistons, 100-99, and spoil the Detroit debut of former 76er Chris Webber and the return from a calf injury of Chauncey Billups.
* At San Antonio, Kobe Bryant scored 34 points, including the go-ahead basket with 1:24 left, and the Los Angeles Lakers held off the Spurs, 100-96.
* At Portland, Zach Randolph's 26 points and 12 rebounds lifted the Trail Blazers over Cleveland, 94-76.
* At Los Angeles, Elton Brand's 27 points and 11 rebounds lifted the Clippers over Golden State, 115-109.
* At Minneapolis, Joe Johnson had 29 points and eight assists to lead the Atlanta Hawks, 105-88, over the Timberwolves.
* At Charlotte, Vince Carter's 26 points included two big baskets late in the fourth quarter as New Jersey beat the Bobcats, 92-85.
* At Milwaukee, Andres Nocioni scored 21 points to lead the Chicago Bulls to their third straight victory, 99-90, over the Bucks.
* At Toronto, Morris Peterson scored 22 points to help the Raptors to a 101-85 victory over the Sacramento Kings.
* At Houston, Amare Stoudemire had 22 points and 11 rebounds and Steve Nash had 21 points and 14 assists as the Phoenix Suns won their 11th straight, 100-91.
* At Washington, Caron Butler scored 17 points and dunked with 2.2 seconds remaining to give the Wizards a 99-98 victory over the New York Knicks. *
