NBA
Notebook: Bobcats trade up to No. 2 in draft

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The Charlotte Bobcats swapped first-round draft choices yesterday with the Los Angeles Clippers, giving the NBA's newest franchise a chance to select Dwight Howard or Emeka Okafor with the No. 2 overall pick.

Charlotte sent the No. 4 overall pick, along with a second-round selection (No. 33 overall), to Los Angeles for the No. 2 choice. The Bobcats also agreed to select Clippers center Predrag Drobnjak, a former Sonic, in tonight's expansion draft.

The Bobcats have made no secret of their desire to obtain Okafor or Howard as one of the main building blocks for the league's 30th franchise.

"We would be pleased starting our basketball team with either one of those young men," said Bernie Bickerstaff, Bobcats coach and general manager. "They represent what we would like to become in terms of character, competitiveness and talent."

The Clippers are expected to choose Peoria prep star Shaun Livingston with the fourth overall pick. Howard, a power forward, and Livingston, a point guard, are two of the top high-school players available in Thursday's draft.

Charlotte will select 14 players from existing NBA rosters in the expansion draft.

McGrady-Francis trade seems close to happening

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Orlando Magic and Houston Rockets are apparently on the verge of pulling off a blockbuster trade involving All-Stars Tracy McGrady and Steve Francis and several others, according to Francis' agent.

Jeff Fried told the Houston Chronicle that a deal sending McGrady to Houston and Francis to Orlando was imminent. Because Francis' contract falls under "base-year compensation" rules, the Magic and Rockets might have to involve Charlotte in the deal.
 
Because the sum of the salaries must come within 15 percent of one another in NBA trades, Orlando might also acquire Houston guard Cuttino Mobley and center Kelvin Cato in the deal. The Magic would also have to send veteran power forward Juwan Howard, point guard Tyronn Lue and center Andrew DeClercq to the Rockets.

"I spoke to Carroll (Dawson, Houston GM), and it was not a done deal," Fried said. "It's close. It's subject to a few contingencies."

Fried also told the Chronicle that Francis was none too happy about leaving a Houston team that was in the playoffs this spring and heading to a Magic team coming off a 21-61 season.

Notes

• The Lakers are exploring their options regarding center Shaquille O'Neal, who issued a trade demand last week after Los Angeles announced that Phil Jackson would not return as head coach.

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said he hadn't spoken to the Lakers yet.

"Will we? Most likely," he said. "But, you know, we also have to ascertain what's real and what's not real.

• Kobe Bryant returned to court in Eagle, Colo., for a two-day hearing that included sharp arguments over how to instruct the jurors who will decide whether the Los Angeles Lakers star is guilty of sexual assault.

Attorneys on both sides said they could be ready for trial as early as the last week in August, though the judge didn't set a trial date.

The issue of consent has emerged as a key battleground in the case. The defense wants jurors told they can convict Bryant only if prosecutors prove beyond a reasonable doubt that his accuser did not consent to sex — and that Bryant knew it.

Prosecutors said they are required to prove only that Bryant's actions were enough to cause the woman to submit to sex against her will.

• The New Jersey Nets are sending their first-round pick (No. 22) in the draft to the Portland Trail Blazers for Eddie Gill and $3 million cash, league sources told The Record (Bergen County, N.J.). The deal cannot be announced until Thursday night, though.

"It's done," said one league official.

Nets president Rod Thorn wouldn't confirm the trade, but said, "There's a distinct possibility we will trade our draft pick."

• The Nets picked up their contract option on coach Lawrence Frank, 33, for next season after he guided New Jersey to the second round of the playoffs.

Frank took over in January after Byron Scott was fired. The Nets won 13 straight games after the change, and went 25-15 under him overall.

• Rudy Tomjanovich, former Houston Rockets coach, was reportedly en route to Los Angeles late yesterday for an interview for the Lakers' coaching position.