Truth & Rumors: Dec. 9, 2004

MLB

Baseball's Hot Stove is heating up with a flurry of rumors and gossip. To keep you up-to-date, we've created a special edition of Hot Stove Truth & Rumors.

NBA

• Pete McEntegart: The 10 Spot -- Thur., Dec. 9 • Truth & Rumors: Kobe pushing Karl to Spurs? • Michael Bradley: Keep Heisman away from QBs • Josh Elliott: Five topics we need to avoid • Arash Markazi: BCS will provide true champ • More Blogs: Mannix | Rolfe | Bechtel | Chen Click here for Today's Sign of the Apocalypse, Game to Watch, Leading Off gallery and much more!

Knicks president Isiah Thomas will not make Jamal Crawford available in a Vince Carter package.
  -- New York Post

Thomas has spoken to the Raptors about a Allan Houston-for-Carter deal that would also include Jalen Rose, Tim Thomas and Jerome Williams.
 -- New York Daily News

One day after Karl Malone ruled out playing for the Lakers in the wake of Kobe Bryant's comments during a Monday radio interview, Malone's old team held out hope for the 41-year-old forward's return and Bryant offered his best mea culpa after the morning shootaround. Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, who was still trying to speak with Malone, added that he and owner Jerry Buss would meet next week with Malone and hoped that emotions will have subsided enough for Malone to reconsider his decision.
 -- Los Angeles Daily News

This isn't about Malone, who would not be the missing piece that gets the Lakers to the NBA Finals. It's about 2007, and the Lakers' ability to attract a free agent who can vault them back into championship consideration once they get under the salary cap. The two biggest free-agent names on the horizon for 2007 are Yao Ming and Amare Stoudemire.
 -- Los Angeles Times

Malone has acknowledged ongoing interest from the Heat.
 -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Heat GM Randy Pfund said Malone probably still does not have the Heat atop his list.
 -- Miami Herald

Bryant's blunder pushes Malone closer to the Spurs if he does decide to return. Some of you will wonder if Malone has any interest in signing with the Mavericks. He doesn't.
 -- Dallas Morning News

For the second straight game, Golden State special assistant Mitch Richmond scouted the Bulls from courtside. The Warriors may be one of the teams interested in trading for Bulls center Eddy Curry.
 -- Arlington Heights Daily Herald

Sixers coach Jim O'Brien is still trying to figure out who can play here, who can help and in what role -- and who needs to go. The players won't like that, because it means O'Brien will toy with different combinations and mess with their heads to figure out who he wants to keep and who he wants to jettison. And the danger of the NBA is that when the players sour, they go all the way.
 -- Camden Courier-Post

Cavs center Zydrunas Ilgauskas said there are no serious talks about a contract extension.
 -- Akron Beacon Journal

Pfund said the Heat took a cursory look at possibly bringing back guard Eddie House after he was released this week by Charlotte. "We don't have a roster spot, so it's kind of a non-issue right now," Pfund said. "You're talking to the guy who's drafted him. Eddie's always been intriguing."
 -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel

NFL

The most lethal passing combination in the NFL is now the league's highest-paid tandem. The Colts and wide receiver Marvin Harrison have finalized a seven-year contract extension worth $67 million. With Peyton Manning tied to the team through the 2010 season and Harrison through 2011, next up is running back Edgerrin James.
 -- Indianapolis Star

Najeh Davenport and Tony Fisher are restricted free agents at the end of the 2004 season and unrestricted free agents after 2005. In addition, the five-year, $18 million deal Ahman Green signed in 2001 ends after next season. This Packers trio is the envy of most running backs coaches across the league. It's also a threesome that's not likely to be together much longer.
 -- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Green Bay will have 10 unrestricted free agents and nine restricted free agents, and with salary cap issues, the Packers are likely to lose several key contributors. "It's way too early to tell," Packers VP of player finance Andrew Brandt said of which way the organization was leaning. "We've begun and we'll continue to do our prioritizing and our internal decision making and have a better idea, obviously, after the season."
 -- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

By now, Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri thought he would have heard some word from about a contract extension.
 -- Boston Globe

Outside linebacker Morlon Greenwood, a restricted free agent after this season, wants to stay with Miami but he also would be "willing to take less money to go somewhere else if it means he would play every down," said his agent, Harold Lewis.
 -- Palm Beach Post

Denver coach Mike Shanahan shot down reports that he would be interested in the Dolphins' vacant coaching position if he was to leave the Broncos after this season.
 -- Palm Beach Post

The reasons Dan Marino won't return to the Dolphins now are not too complex. He works on TV football programs about six months out of the year and does endorsements for auto dealerships, a jewelry store and soon will take on pitchman duties for a mattress company. All those jobs bring in approximately $4 million per year.
 -- Miami Herald

Bills offensive coordinator Tom Clements, a former Notre Dame quarterback who led the Irish to a 1973 national championship and has the endorsement of Ara Parseghian, will meet with school officials today to discuss the head coaching vacancy there.
 -- New York Daily News

Mike Ditka thinks Notre Dame would miss out on a terrific coaching candidate if it does not hire Clements.
 -- Chicago Tribune

Vikings coach Mike Tice said yesterday that there are only two or three college coaching jobs that might lure him away from the NFL. And yes, he was aware his name had been connected -- if tenuously -- to the University of Washington's search for a new coach. "Certainly (Washington) would be one of those," he said.
 -- Seattle Press Intelligencer

Not coming in for treatment on Tuesday might have sealed the fate of Browns quarterback Jeff Garcia for the last month of the season. Or for this weekend's game against the Bills, anyway. Interim coach Terry Robiskie named rookie Luke McCown as the starter for the second consecutive game.
 -- Akron Beacon Journal

Quarterback Marc Bulger said his target date for a return to the Rams is Dec. 27 against Philadelphia.
 -- St. Louis Post-Dispatch

The Chiefs were mulling a decision whether to place Priest Holmes on the injured-reserve list, a move that would officially shut him down for the rest of the season. A decision could come as soon as today.
 -- Kansas City Star

The Colts signed veteran place-kicker Martin Gramatica and released Jason Baker.
 -- Indianapolis Star Tribune

NHL

It's up to the NHL's bargaining team to decide if it's going to walk away or get involved in negotiations to save the season. If there's no give and take today at the first NHL-NHLPA meeting since September, then it's obvious the league remains determined to get a salary cap. The players aren't going to break on the issue of not accepting a salary cap, but according to sources, they're willing to bend on some issues -- arbitration, qualifying offers and the entry-level system -- which concern the owners.
 -- Ottawa Sun

Brendan Shanahan's group of 20 hockey players, coaches, general managers, referees and broadcasters came up with 10 recommendations to improve the game.
1. Create competition committee of players, coaches, on-ice officials and GMs that would regularly study the game.
2. Flagrant diving should be made two-minute minor and 10-minute misconduct; all stick-on-body work should be illegal.
3. Five minutes of overtime, then a shoot-out to settle ties in the regular season.
4. Have one-minute, rather than two-minute, minor penalties during overtime.
5. Streamline goaltending equipment.
6. Adopt AHL experimental rules (tag-up offside, wide bluelines, restricted goalie zone, and push goal line back two feet).
7. Institute automatic icing. On intentional icing, defending team should not make line change.
8. A two-minute minor penalty for any player who shoots a puck into stands in defending zone.
9. Improved access for broadcast rights holders.
10. Improve communication and partnership.
 -- Globe & Mail

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