THURSDAY, 1:59pm: The Jazz, willing to take on Mo Williams' contract, have emerged as a potential third team in a deal between the Mavs and Clippers, Stein and Chad Ford report. The deal is contingent on Williams exercising his $8.5MM option for next year. Realistically, Stein and Ford say, the deadline for the deal to happen is Friday, since that's when Odom's contract becomes fully guaranteed for next year.
TUESDAY, 11:40pm: The Clippers have engaged the Mavericks in trade talks to discuss the possibility of acquiring Lamar Odom, according to ESPN.com's Marc Stein. For the Clips, a deal for Odom may hinge on their ability to find a third club willing to take on the contract of Mo Williams, says Stein. Involving a third team would allow the Mavericks to consummate a deal without taking back significant salary.
The Mavericks are expected to simply waive Odom to save the $5.8MM of his $8.2MM salary that's not guaranteed for 2012/13. But if the Mavs can find a taker on the trade market, it would create even more cap flexibility for the team as it prepares to make a big offer to Deron Williams. The current deadline for a decision on Odom is Friday, though the two sides have had discussions about pushing that date back into July.
Williams, meanwhile, has a player option for next season, which he would have to exercise in order for him to be trade-eligible. According to Stein, the Lakers are one team that has expressed some interest in taking on Williams and his $8.5MM salary. With Ramon Sessions having opted out of his contract, the Lakers will be seeking backcourt help, and the club has an $8.9MM trade exception that could absorb Williams' contract.
After being traded out of Los Angeles last December, Odom seemed unhappy and unmotivated in Dallas, so if the Clippers were to acquire him, they'd be betting on a return to L.A. resulting in a return to form for the 2011 Sixth Man of the Year.
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