Hold the Amare; bring back Tyson

There have been a some rumors lately involving Hornets center Tyson Chandler and here's why: New Orleans is looking at a luxury tax-triggering payroll of $76 million next season when Chris Paul's salary jumps to $13.8 million.

If Jerry Reinsdorf hates the idea of paying the luxury tax, imagine how Hornets owner George Shinn feels, playing in a small market and trying to survive post-Katrina? New Orleans will keep all-stars Paul and David West. No team wants to take Peja Stojakovic's $14.2 million salary. So Chandler is the best option to trim payroll.

We've heard suggestions of Chandler to Detroit for Rasheed Wallace and Chandler to Miami for Shawn Marion. But those players won't stay in New Orleans.

Here's a deal that makes more sense: Chandler back to the Bulls for Drew Gooden, Joakim Noah and Cedric Simmons. Gooden and Simmons have expiring contracts and Noah gives the Hornets a big man they can afford.

Chandler has missed about 15 games with injuries and is having a disappointing season (8.8 points, 8.3 rebounds). If he could match last year's numbers (11.8 points, 11.7 boards), he'd be a nice addition. One positive is Chandler brings some cost certainty (two more years after this one at $12.9 and $13.8), something Amare Stoudemire would not.

MORE ON AMARE
Speaking of Stoudemire – and everyone is – I think the biggest issue scaring prospective trade partners is how much he'll cost salary-wise.

To make a point, here's the list of teams that are on pace to have maximum-level cap room in 2010, when Stoudemire can opt out and become an unrestricted free agent: Atlanta, Cleveland, Detroit, Houston, Miami, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Portland, San Antonio and a few others.

In other words, there is a good chance some team will make a ridiculous offer. If the Bulls were able to land Stoudemire in a trade, they would most likely lose him in 2010 or end up doling out a $100-plus million contract to keep him.

Could Stoudemire agree to a reasonable contract extension before hitting free agency? In theory, yes. But would he really give up the giant payday free agency might bring?

There are a couple recent examples of questionably giant free-agent contracts. Orlando shelled out $118 million for ex-Seattle forward Rashard Lewis in 2007. He helped turn the Magic into an elite team, but Orlando may dread three years of salary beyond $20-million from 2010-13.

Last year, Washington forked over $111 million for Gilbert Arenas because Golden State lost Baron Davis unexpectedly and provided some pricey competition. So far, Agent Zero has responded with zero games played, thanks to a knee injury that's taken two years to heal.

KERR ADMITS HEAVY INTEREST
A friend of mind who's a life-long Suns fans is hoping they trade Stoudemire to Detroit for Tayshaun Prince and Rasheed Wallace. That's not a bad deal, though Wallace, 34, would give Phoenix one more over-the-hill regular, joining Steve Nash, Shaquille O'Neal and Grant Hill. The Suns would also probably have to throw in three players to match salaries.

Phoenix general manager Steve Kerr addressed the trade talk on Friday afternoon and admitted his phone has been busy.

“I’m not going to make anybody any promises that they’re staying or going,” Kerr said, according to suns.com. “If you see a team that has a lot of talent and they’re struggling and it’s the trade deadline, you’re going to call them. So yeah, I’ve gotten a lot of calls.

“We don’t have the momentum that we'd like to have, we are underperforming and there are financial concerns. So there’s things, there’s issues to talk about and to deal with and we have to do what’s best for our team going forward. That could mean doing something or that could mean doing nothing.”

BULLS SCENARIOS
I suspect the Bulls are intrigued, but leery, of Stoudemire trade scenarios. Besides the salary issues mentioned above, he had microfracture knee surgery in 2005, hasn't been a good defender and there have been questions about his attitude and leadership.

My suggestion for a Bulls-Suns trade was Drew Gooden, Tyrus Thomas and Andres Nocioni for Stoudemire. If the Bulls decide they want him, it wouldn't be a big deal to add a draft pick or someone like Thabo Sefolosha or Aaron Gray to the deal.

This episode brings back memories of the great Pau Gasol debate of 2007. Memphis was ready to dump the 7-foot Spaniard and wanted Luol Deng from the Bulls, plus a few other pieces. The Bulls decided Deng was a future all-star who had yet to hit his prime and declined.

Looking back now, that may have been a bad decision. Gasol turned out to be a winning piece for the Lakers, who gave up next to nothing in return a year later. At least Deng has stepped up in recent weeks to resemble the player the Bulls thought they had two years ago.

If the Suns want to trim payroll, they need to trade Stoudemire now, because there are no expiring contracts once summer arrives. The Bulls, on the other hand, might consider using Deng in a deal for Stoudemire after July 1 because they would be losing a large contract while taking on another.

It would be difficult for the Bulls to use Deng in a Stoudemire deal now because NBA rules make it tough to trade a player in the first year after signing a larger contract.