WALKER BEING SHOPPED! Denver GM Confirms It

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@ix.netcom.com>]

I quickly scanned over the Nuggets free agent article and missed the
Walker trade talk section, so here it is, if you bypassed the article:
   

                  Seeking Hidden Treasures

                  If NBA, union settle lockout, Nuggets hope to strike gold by
                  exploring free-agent market
  
                  By Dave Krieger
                  News Staff Writer
                  <snip>

                  Among the names that have been mentioned already are Boston
                  All-Star forward Antoine Walker and Toronto guard and Denver
                  native Chauncey Billups. Forward Danny Fortson and guard Bobby
                  Jackson have been mentioned in connection with those talks,
                  though the Nuggets' fistful of future draft choices is
                  considered their most desirable commodity.

                  "All I'll say is I know Boston has been talking to a lot of
                  people about Antoine," Issel said.

                  For the Nuggets, the Walker scenario poses considerable risks.
                  The Celtics, who are either unwilling or unable to match
                  Walker's salary demands, will trade him if the team on the
                  other end is willing to absorb much of the dead weight on Rick
                  Pitino's roster. Does the name Pervis Ellison ring a bell?

                  Such a deal would put the Nuggets back in the situation they
                  faced with McDyess a year ago -- a choice of signing Walker to
                  an enormous new contract or losing him and getting nothing in
                  return next summer. It also would fill their payroll with
                  flotsam and make it hard to add anyone else.

                  Besides, the Celtics want to pull the trigger as soon as the
                  lockout is lifted, and Issel said the Nuggets won't consider a
                  deal that takes them out of the free-agent market before it
                  begins.

                  "Our No. 1 priority is still to explore the free-agent
                  market," he said.

                  More plausible for Boston might be the rumored deal with
                  Miami, in which Walker and baggage would bring Jamal Mashburn
                  and P.J. Brown. Of course, Mashburn and Brown have been
                  rumored headed to Golden State for Latrell Sprewell, too.
                  While teams have been barred from talking with players or
                  their agents during the lockout, they've been free to talk
                  with one another.

                  "Although it's not the case with us," Issel said, "I would
                  guess that some of these deals have been consummated and you
                  will see deals being announced once the lockout is over."

                  A trade for Billups might be more attractive. Although Toronto
                  general manager Glen Grunwald has said the Nuggets have no one
                  he would want in return, he has taken on Charles Oakley's $11
                  million balloon payment in a trade with New York since then.
                  The Raptors might be looking to dump a modest amount of salary
                  going into the free-agent market.

                  New Nuggets head coach Mike D'Antoni visited the Air Force
                  Academy earlier this month to make sure he still has a
                  location for his postponed camp. Air Force officials told him
                  they'll work with him on last-minute scheduling requirements,
                  which gives him a leg up on Philadelphia 76ers coach Larry
                  Brown.

                  Brown has the Sixers' camp scheduled at his alma mater, the
                  University of North Carolina. He's now scouting alternatives,
                  including the Ivy League's Princeton University.

                  But having a camp site is the only slam dunk for the Nuggets
                  as they prepare for three or four weeks which could determine
                  the direction of their team for years.

                  October 31, 1998

              
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