Truth & Rumors: Sept. 23, 2004

NBA

Will Vinsanity end up in the Big Easy? Maybe. Gary Dineen/Getty Images • Pete McEntegart: The 10 Spot -- Thurs., Sept. 23 • Truth & Rumors: Vince Carter to the Big Easy? • Josh Elliott: It's too painful to go on being a fan • Dan Hoyle: The Vendor Chronicle All-Star team • More Blogs: Bechtel | Chen | Ballard | Cannella Click here for Today's Sign of the Apocalypse, Game to Watch, Leading Off gallery and much more!

Shaquille O'Neal told teammates that Michael Jordan has left him several messages, and O'Neal was convinced Jordan wants to play for the Heat this season. O'Neal told teammates he was not interested in having Jordan join the Heat. O'Neal even asked whether one of the players should go to management and express the desire not to add Jordan
 -- Miami Herald

The one trade rumor that won't go away has Vince Carter going to the New Orleans Hornets for Baron Davis.
 -- Edmonton Sun

Scottie Pippen is telling friends he will follow through on his plans to retire.
 -- Chicago Tribune

Dennis Rodman hopes to give the Nuggets a second look next week. Denver GM Kiki Vandeweghe told Rodman he was welcome to work out with the team again once his toe injury heals.
 -- Denver Post

Clyde Drexler, who recently startled the basketball world by saying he might come back to play in the NBA this season, could end up with the Nuggets, who have shown interest in signing the 42-year-old former Portland and Houston star.
  -- Springfield (Mass.) Republican

MLB

The Red Sox appear content to wait until after the season to seriously pursue re-signing Pedro Martinez. The right-hander does not seem thrilled with how things have gone to this point.
 -- Boston Herald

Days before the Nomar Garciaparra deal, the Cubs were close to acquiring shortstop Orlando Cabrera from the Expos. But when Garciaparra became available, Cubs GM Jim Hendry jumped at the chance. Now, the Cubs should make a strong push to acquire Cabrera over the winter.
 -- Chicago Sun-Times

A day after expressing concern that Magglio Ordonez's ''very rare injury'' still wasn't showing any signs of improvement, White Sox GM Ken Williams phoned Ordonez to say he wasn't trying to damage Ordonez's market value or signal any disinterest in re-signing him.
 -- Chicago Sun-Times

Williams said he has been more than happy with the job of first-year manager Ozzie Guillen and his coaching staff but isn't ready to offer them contract extensions.
 -- Chicago Sun-Times

In Anaheim, the talents of Francisco Rodriguez and Dallas McPherson might usher out Troy Percival and Troy Glaus.
 -- Orange County Register

Dodgers GM Paul DePodesta all but confirmed that manager Jim Tracy will return in 2005.
 -- Los Angeles Daily News

Cliff Floyd doesn't know whether he will be back with the Mets next year, but he says he wants to come back in order to make up for all that has gone on in his first two years in New York.
 -- Newark Star-Ledger

Shawn Chacon's audition as a closer could be an open-and-shut case after one season, with the possibility lingering that he won't even be a Rockie next year.
 -- Denver Post

The Rangers have the potential for significant salary relief this offseason with eight potential free agents -- Jay Powell, Jeff Zimmerman, Jeff Nelson, Herbert Perry, Brad Fullmer, Eric Young, Brian Jordan and Rusty Greer -- whose combined salaries come to more than $21 million. Depending on who is re-signed, the Rangers should have the ability to be active in the free-agent market.
 -- Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Informal overtures by MLB officials toward Peter G. Angelos over a deal to bring the Expos to Washington have gone nowhere, setting the stage for a showdown in Milwaukee today between the league and the Orioles owner.
 -- Washington Post

NFL

The Dolphins are downplaying Sam Madison's yelling episode directed at quarterback A.J. Feeley, but teammates are hinting that an offense-defense rift is real.
 -- Miami Herald

"I probably felt the trigger was a little fast," Bucs QB Brad Johnson said of coach Jon Gruden's decision to replace him after just four series with second-year pro Chris Simms in the second quarter of Sunday's 10-6 loss to Seattle.
 -- St. Petersburg Times

Jeremy Shockey has gone from a centerpiece of the Giants' offense to a low-impact player in the first two games of the season.
 -- New York Daily News

Browns coach Butch Davis sounded optimistic Wednesday that injured top pick Kellen Winslow will be available for the stretch run.
 -- Cleveland Plain Dealer

Tim Couch didn't suffer a torn rotator cuff but has tendonitis in his shoulder and elbow. He should be ready to work out for teams in a week or two. The Colts are still interested. He might still file a grievance against the Packers for releasing him while injured.
 -- Cleveland Plain Dealer

Panthers running back Stephen Davis, expected to be out two to five weeks after having knee surgery Friday, shortened the long end of that prediction Wednesday.
 -- Charlotte Observer

NHL

NHLPA head Bob Goodenow explained on Canadian national TV that all players want is a reasonable share of the league's revenues, that it was the owners who locked out the players, that ticket prices are not governed by player salaries but rather by how much the owners think the fans will pay, and that the only side that offered a compromise was the players. But the audience did not want to listen. They long ago bought the whopper from NHL boss Gary Bettman and the owners that ticket prices skyrocketed in the 1990s because player salaries did.
 -- Globe and Mail

The NHLPA has filed an ''unfair labor practices'' charge against the NHL with the U.S. National Labor Relations Board for its failure to provide a list of locked-out players.
 -- Ottawa Sun

Hall of Fame coach Scotty Bowman said, "Right now, it's hard to get a true picture because all we're missing are some practices and preseason games. But wait until October because then the effect will be different. I feel for the people who work in the buildings and the effect [the lockout] has on the economy in a lot of places. It's going to have quite a trickle-down effect on a lot of people's lives and that's the most unfortunate aspect surrounding this situation."
 -- Canadian Press

Flyers center Jeremy Roenick, who says a concussion he suffered makes him eligible for his 2004-05 salary, said, "It's not that I want to get paid. I'm trying to decide if I want to play this game again, and right now I don't think I can."
 -- Philadelphia Inquirer

Soccer

David Beckham's majestic free kick, which gave Real Madrid a 1-0 win over Osasuna on Tuesday, did not stop Madrid fans from booing and targeting him as the epitome of the "star culture" they believe is pervading the club.
 -- The Telegram (UK)

Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood is convinced that his manager, Arsène Wenger, will sign a new contract and resist any advances from Real Madrid. Sir Bobby Robson, the 71-year-old sacked by Newcastle last month, is a surprise candidate to take over as coach at Real Madrid.
 -- The Independent (UK)

Concerned over American goalkeeper Tim Howard's recent slump, Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has targeted Chelsea's Carlo Cudicini for transfer when the window opens again in January.
 -- The Sun (UK)