Hornets-Pacers swap has eyebrows raised across NBA

	With $7.5 million worth of help from the Hornets, the Pacers are poised to bring forward Al Harrington back to Indiana. David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images
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It doesn't exactly rank with the scenario presented in Oliver Stone's JFK, but New Orleans appears to be at the center of a conspiracy theory. The Hornets' acquisition of Peja Stojakovic in a sign-and-trade last month with the Pacers has raised some suspicions around the league -- especially now that Al Harrington appears headed to Indiana.

Stojakovic, a free agent, agreed to a five-year, $64 million deal with the Hornets on July 1. Twelve days later the deal suddenly turned into a sign-and-trade, with New Orleans sending a $7.5 million trade exception to Indiana. The Pacers now are ready to use that exception in a sign-and-trade with the Hawks to land coveted free-agent small forward Harrington.

How did Indiana manage to finagle the trade exception when it had appeared that Stojakovic was going to walk anyway?

Some around the league wonder if Hornets owner George Shinn ordered it as a favor to Indiana co-owner Herb Simon, a member of the league's past expansion/relocation committees. Shinn, after all, might seek to relocate his team in the coming years if a planned return to New Orleans doesn't pan out.

What makes people suspicious is that it is almost unheard of for a team to do a sign-and-trade where the player involved doesn't get a raise or an extra year on the contract. Even Pacers CEO Donnie Walsh admits he was surprised that New Orleans was willing to deal, though he notes the Hornets did receive cash back (the amount has been reported to be as low as $250,000). He also says the Hornets might have been motivated to make sure Harrington got traded to the East.

"I think George did us a favor, but I don't know if he did it for any particular reason," Walsh said. "But I do know Herb has been very sensitive to George's plights [in the past]."

Armed with their new trade exception, the Pacers are set to acquire Harrington for cash and a future No. 1 draft pick, despite being over the salary cap. Without the trade exception, they would have had to include players to match up salaries. And Indiana appears to have won out on the Harrington sweepstakes even though the Warriors reportedly offered a package that included Troy Murphy and a draft pick, while the Bucks dangled Jamaal Magloire and his expiring contract. "Since when did the NBA become so buddy-buddy?" asked one Eastern Conference GM, noting that Hawks GM Billy Knight is also a former Walsh protégé.

There is nothing illegal about GMs or owners making deals with friends or former bosses. Shinn might not have been involved in the Stojakovic decision at all, and Knight might have good reasons for not taking back any players and/or bad contracts. Ultimately, those moves will be judged on wins and losses. But, like Stone's films, it makes one wonder if there's more to the story than what we've been told.