Hart to Phoenix, Tucker to Wolves?

Sources close to the situation have told HOOPSWORLD's Alex Kennedy that the rumored deal that would have sent Jason Hart to the New Orleans Hornets for Devin Brown has been scrubbed entirely. The Timberwolves have instead reached a deal that would land Hart in Phoenix in exchange for Alando Tucker. - HoopsWorld

The Suns traded guard Alando Tucker, a conditional 2010 second-round pick and cash to the Minnesota Timberwolves for veteran Jason Hart. The Suns immediately waived Hart.  - KTAR.com

The Sacramento Kings and Maloof family today signed President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie to a multi-year contract extension. Per team policy, financial terms of the contract were not disclosed.  -  NBA.com

Grizzlies forward Rudy Gay was inactive for Monday night's game against the Washington Wizards because of a sprained left ankle, leaving Memphis without its leading scorer. Gay first injured the ankle Dec. 16 in the Grizzlies' 110-97 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. He left the game but played in the four games since, averaging almost 19 points over that span. - NBA.com

The Suns became the only NBA team to defeat the two conference leaders this season. The Lakers, who had defeated Phoenix by 19 and 20 points previously, suffered a 15-point loss for the second time in the past four days.  -  azcentral.com

Bullish on Doug Collins: Money talks and Doug Collins just might be persuaded to listen to a generous offer to coach the Bulls, sources tell us. Vinny Del Negro appears destined to receive his walking papers. Finding the right replacement is the stumbling block. Collins, who coached the Bulls from 1986-89, has a 332-287 career record. - Chicago Tribune

One night after losing to the second-worst team in the Pacific Division, the Celts did the East Bay limbo, managing to go lower than the division’s flounders, the Warriors. Playing well below C’s level, the visitors turned the ball over a season-high 26 times - 22 through three quarters - falling to Golden State, 103-99, last night.  -  Boston Herald

The Lakers' center has struggled since Pau Gasol returned from a hamstring injury, but Coach Phil Jackson remained resolute that the 22-year-old center would improve, nudging aside a reporter's question about possibly inserting Lamar Odom in Bynum's place in the starting lineup.  -  LA Times

Marco Belinelli spent a little extra time Monday after practice working with shooting consultant Dave Hopla, who is with the team for a couple of days. Belinelli has suffered through an extended shooting slump and hopes Hopla can get him back on track. "He's a good guy, everybody talks about him real well and he's an incredible shooting teacher. ... It's better for us to have a guy like that who can help," Belinelli said.  -  Toronto Star

The Boston Celtics still want to see what happens in the future with Glen Davis, the burly power forward who suffered an embarrassing broken right thumb just before the start of the regular season after getting into a fight with a friend.  -  FanHouse

Guard Willie Green was scratched with a sprained left ankle he suffered during the loss in Utah on Saturday. Iverson, who started last night, did participate and went to the far end of the court with Jordan and assistant coach Mike O'Koren for some extra work.  - Philadelphia Daily News

Rondo’s success at the line has been an issue most of the season, but, entering last night’s game at Golden State, he improved to 60 percent in December after shooting 38 percent in November. Yet, even after a 7-of-9 showing in a 103-99 loss to the Warriors last night, he’s last on the team at 55.4 percent.  -  Boston Globe

Brook Lopez fled the locker room and didn’t talk to the media after the Nets were clobbered by Oklahoma City last night, and his teammates could only provide theories. "It wasn’t the type of night he would like," Rafer Alston said after the 105-89 loss. "He always wants to excel for this team and it wasn’t one of his better nights."  The Star Ledger

Sources close to the process told ESPN.com that multiple phone discussions Monday between Rockets general manager Daryl Morey and coach Rick Adelman in conjunction with (Tracy) McGrady's lead agent, Arn Tellem, led to a mutual agreement that both sides would try to hatch a workable trade before the league's annual trading deadline on Feb. 18.  -  ESPN.com

"A lot of times, an opponent will overlook Damp," Kidd said. "My job is to get him the ball and make the game easy. He’s doing the hard part — catching it and putting it in the basket. When he plays like he has been, we’re a different team."  -  Star-Telegram

There have even been rumors Butler, the former Park High School star, could be headed to the Milwaukee Bucks. That would indeed be a great move for the Bucks, who desperately need a prime-time small forward. What's more, Butler has said in the past he wouldn't mind playing in Milwaukee and being closer to his family and friends.  - Racine Journal-Times

A source with knowledge of Monday’s talks said the Rockets would have allowed McGrady to stay, but the guard thought he’d be too much of a distraction to the team. McGrady is making a league-high $23 million in the final year of his contract, and won’t be easy to trade given his large salary and how little teams have seen him play this season. Rival teams say the Rockets are willing to take back long-term money for the right trade with McGrady, but no deal appears imminent.  -  Yahoo! Sports

Bird is exploring trades, but he won't make a move just to appease fans. He is looking toward the summer of 2011, when the Pacers will gain salary cap flexibility as the contracts of Mike Dunleavy and Troy Murphy expire. They will make $22.5 million combined next season.  -  Indianapolis Star

With the Jazz in the market for a third point guard, reporters seeking information about the team's ongoing search quizzed coach Jerry Sloan on Monday. Asked if he would be interested in bringing back any former players -- perhaps someone like Keith McLeod , Brevin Knight or Dee Brown -- Sloan smiled. "Yeah," he said. "I'd take John Stockton back if he was available."  - Salt Lake Tribune

When Rasheed Wallace said three weeks ago that the NBA was headed for a crash to rival the college basketball betting scandal of the 1950s, it seemed fairly certain the league’s lords of discipline would be hitting him with another fine. But there was silence from the big offices, and now it appears that was quite by plan. According to sources, the NBA did contact the Celtics about comments from Wallace and Ray Allen regarding allegations by convicted former referee Tim Donaghy, but it preferred to lend no further publicity to the matter.  - Boston Herald

Any NBA scout will tell you that Yi has poor instincts ("I’d say nonexistent," one says), and most wonder whether he will ever develop in that area. Any NBA scout will tell you that Yi’s assist total this season — two, in 184 minutes — is pretty much what they have come to expect from him. And any NBA scout will bet his check that in two crucial areas — defensive tenacity and overall basketball IQ — the athletic 22-year-old may never be the starting-quality player the Nets hope he will become.  - Newark Star-Ledger

Last season Andersen was much more than just a fan favorite. He led the NBA in blocked and altered shots per minute. The energy he provided was palpable and changed the game. This season, though, Andersen has been struggling to perform at the same level he did a season ago, especially early in the campaign. "I can't deny that early in the season I was a little worried about him," said Denver Nuggets head coach George Karl.   -  HoopsWorld

According to Nuggets coach George Karl, Monday's game against Sacramento will be the last his team plays without point guard Chauncey Billups. Including Monday, Billups has missed the last two games with a left groin strain. "I'm pretty confident that he'll be able to play 100 percent come the first of the year," Karl said.   - Denver Post

The Celtics have some good news and bad news following Monday's 103-99 loss to Golden State on the injury front. The bad news: Glen "Big Baby" Davis left the arena on crutches and told reporters he has a sprained right ankle. He was wearing a protective boot and said he couldn't walk without aid. He could be out for an extended period. He didn't sound positive. X-rays were negative. Davis sprained the ankle in an ugly collision with Golden State's rugged Rony Turiaf, in which Davis was called for the offensive foul.  -  Boston Globe

But as a member of the fraternity, Van Gundy can just as quickly take the Florida Gators football coach's plight seriously. He knows coaching can be dangerous to your health. Relentlessly driven and intense, Van Gundy concedes that he's thought about whether the job could kill him. "Yeah, I definitely have thought about that. I don't see myself dying on the sideline. That's why I don't see Jerry Sloan in me," Van Gundy said, referring to Sloan, the Utah Jazz icon who is the dean of all pro coaches at 21 years with one team.  - Orlando Sentinel

The D.C. police department is investigating the circumstances surrounding Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas taking guns to Verizon Center this month, a police official said Monday. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing, said police are looking into the original account of the incident released by the team. The District has strict laws that prohibit carrying guns, openly or concealed.  - Washington Post