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["Jaims" <jaims@info.com.ph>]

Report: Hawks to acquire Abdur-Rahim from Grizzlies
June 27, 2001
BRISTOL, CONNECTICUT (TICKER) -- In the first big trade of the NBA draft,
the Atlanta Hawks reportedly will acquire scoring forward Shareef
Abdur-Rahim from the Vancouver Grizzlies for the third overall pick and a
pair of players.
Less than 24 hours before the draft, ESPN reported Tuesday night that the
Hawks will send forward Lorenzen Wright and guard Brevin Knight to the
Grizzlies, who are expected to take 7-foot Spanish forward Pau Gasol with
the pick.
The report said the deal has been proposed but is expected to be made.
It was believed that the Hawks were going to use the third pick to select
Duke senior forward Shane Battier, who had impressive workouts for the team.
But general manager Pete Babcock said Monday that he was fielding offers for
the pick and apparently has accepted one.
Abdur-Rahim, 24, may be the best active player yet to play in an All-Star
Game. The third overall pick in the 1996 draft, the 6-9 forward average 20.5
points and 9.1 rebounds last season.
Since entering the NBA, Abdur-Rahim never has averaged less than 18.7
points. He is Vancouver's all-time leading scorer but has expressed his
unhappiness with the team's losing ways.
The trade provides a homecoming for Abdur-Rahim, a native of Marietta,
Georgia. It also adds another quality player to the Hawks, who have rebuilt
nicely over the last four months.
In February, the Hawks dealt impending free agent center Dikembe Mutombo to
the Philadelphia 76ers for forwards Theo Ratliff and Toni Kukoc and center
Nazr Mohammed. Abdur-Rahim joins a core that includes improving guard Jason
Terry and youngster DerMarr Johnson.
However, the trade leaves the Hawks without a legitimate point guard or a
first-round pick. They also have the 34th overall pick.
Ironically, the willowy Gasol has been likened to Kukoc. At 227 pounds and
just 20 years old, he is the most coveted foreign player in the draft and
the Grizzlies should be able to get him.
A key component of Spain's gold-medal winning squad at the 1999 World Junior
Championships, Gasol averaged 19.5 points and six rebounds for FC Barcelona
last season, shooting 69.3 percent from the field.
Gasol has one year left on his contract and must pay more than $2 million to
buy it out. His NBA team can only contribute $350,000 to that amount but his
representatives have said that he would buy out the deal if he were selected
sixth or higher.
Vancouver also owns the sixth pick and could add another big man to help
offset the loss of Abdur-Rahim. This year's draft is deep in power forwards
and centers.
It could also be a homecoming of sorts for Wright, who grew up in Memphis
and played his college ball there. The Grizzlies have applied for relocation
to Memphis and are awaiting word from the league's relocation committee.
The 6-11 Wright averaged 12.4 points and 7.5 rebounds in 75 games last
season, his second with the Hawks and fifth in the NBA. He was a 1996
first-round pick of the Los Angeles Clippers and joined the Hawks in 1999
via a sign-and-trade, receiving a six-year, $42 million deal.
The 5-10 Knight split last season between Cleveland and Atlanta, averaging
6.3 points and 5.9 assists in 53 games in another injury-plagued campaign.
The 1997 first-round pick missed just two games in his rookie season but has
sat out 57 games in three years since.