Report: Indiana Pacers Front-Runners to Land Chris Kaman


Many teams are said to be in the mix for Chris Kaman’s services, and according to the Times-Picayune, the Indiana Pacers are currently in the lead: “According to [SI], talks have revolved around two of Houston’s young players who were top 10 picks in the 2009 draft, center Hasheem Thabeet and power forward Jordan Hill. Thabeet was the second overall pick that year by Memphis; Hill was the eighth overall choice by the Knicks. The magazine also said second-year forward Patrick Patterson and third-year point guard Jonny Flynn were discussed, along with Terrence Williams, a small forward. The Rockets also have the rights to the Knicks’ 2012 first-round pick. A Houston television station was reporting Wednesday night that, according to their sources, SI’s report was inaccurate as it related to players involved. The station said the chances of the Rockets trading for Kaman are slim. Earlier this week, NBA.com indicated Kaman could not be traded until Feb. 14, but that was not correct. He could not be dealt along with another Hornets player before Feb. 14 under new collective bargaining agreement rules. However, Kaman could be traded singularly at any time. Because he has a $14 million expiring contract, the Hornets likely would not package him with another current player that would add another contract that would complicate the mathematics of the deal. The Hornets are not obligated to take back any salary in a trade for Kaman, according to sources, and a team acquiring him would only have to part with $9.3 million in player salaries according to league rules, not $14 million. A league source said Wednesday night that the Indiana Pacers, one of several other teams reportedly in the mix for Kaman, could, in fact, be the leading candidate for a swap. The Pacers apparently are looking for a backup to Roy Hibbert. Cleveland, Golden State and San Antonio also reportedly have expressed interest in Kaman.”