ESPN NBA Draft

NEW YORK -- With the first pick in the NBA draft, the Orlando Magic will do something. Maybe they'll keep it, maybe they'll trade it.

On the eve of the draft, even they weren't sure.

"There are plenty of deals out there right now" for both Tracy McGrady and the No. 1 pick, Orlando general manager John Weisbrod said. "But we're certainly not going to rush anything.

"These are the two biggest chips we have to use to improve a team that was a pretty bad team last year. There's no time pressure. We're going about it as methodically as we can."

While Weisbrod sorted out his options, other teams were swinging deals.

The Dallas Mavericks reached agreement with Washington to acquire the fifth pick in the draft, along with Jerry Stackhouse and Christian Laettner, for Antawn Jamison, sources told ESPN.com's Marc Stein.

The Phoenix Suns, Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers were very active in trade talks, giving this the draft much more potential for reshuffling than in previous years.

On Wednesday afternoon, Emeka Okafor sat inside a hotel ballroom completely unaware he was setting a record for most shoulder shrugs. Okafor still had no idea where he'll be headed -- or whether he'll be chosen first by Orlando or second by the expansion Charlotte Bobcats.

It was a fitting welcome to the world of uncertainty that the NBA has become, with virtually no one untradeable now that Shaquille O'Neal and Tracy McGrady are being shopped.

"Well, there is one guy who won't be traded," Spurs general manager R.C. Buford said, making a reference to Tim Duncan.

Personnel managers, team executives and coaches were all part of what felt like a leaguewide caffeine binge, the possibility of several imminent blockbuster trades making them as hungry to consume information as they were to disperse disinformation.

For the moment, all eyes were on Weisbrod, who holds two of the most important cards -- McGrady, and the No. 1 pick -- in what has evolved into a 30-team poker tournament.

The Atlanta Hawks were known to be one of the teams making a push to acquire the No. 1 pick from the Magic.

"We've worked on it diligently," general manager Billy Knight said. "Now, all we can do is sit back and wait. Whatever happens, happens."

The Hawks would want to select local prep star Dwight Howard with the first pick, which would be just fine with the Bobcats, who seem to be leaning toward Okafor, a 6-foot-10 junior from Connecticut, as their preferred choice at No. 2.

The Bobcats also were trying to find a way to get another first-round pick to put them in position to draft Jameer Nelson of Saint Joseph's.

"There are some other point guards in the mix, also, but Jameer happens to be the player of the year," Bobcats coach Bernie Bickerstaff said. "If you can get a player like that down in the middle of the (first) round, it's a coup."

Boston general manager Danny Ainge said he had 14 different trades under consideration depending on how teams use their lottery picks, and the Bulls were known to be offering Tyson Chandler to a number of teams.

Ainge denied a report that the Celtics were considering swapping Paul Pierce for Chandler and the No. 3 pick in the draft, while Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban labeled "false" a reported offer of Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki for O'Neal.

Amid all the trade talk and uncertainty, Okafor arrived in New York and was peppered with questions regarding where he would rather play, Orlando or Charlotte (which hold the first two picks), and whether his gut instinct led him to believe that the Magic would trade the No. 1 pick.

"Trade it? People don't ordinarily trade the first pick," Okafor replied.

Then again, the Magic aren't an ordinary team.

Orlando had the overall No. 1 pick in 1993 and used it in a trade, sending Chris Webber to Golden State for Penny Hardaway and three future first-round picks.

Orlando also let the top pick from 1992, O'Neal, leave as a free agent four years later -- a mistake from which the Magic have yet to recover.

"It's still an option," Weisbrod said of trading the No. 1 pick. "We have not made up our minds."

If the Bulls choose Duke freshman Luol Deng, Wisconsin guard Devin Harris or Arizona forward Andre Iguodala with the third pick, it would allow Peoria prep star Shaun Livingston to go fourth to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Things begin to get hazy beginning with the fifth pick, and the remainder of the top 10 -- barring any trades -- will be Atlanta, Phoenix, Toronto, Philadelphia and Cleveland.

ESPN.com's Insider Chad Ford reported the Suns had agreed to send the seventh pick to Chicago for cash, a future first-round pick and a second-round pick (No. 31 overall).

Utah has three first-round picks (Nos. 14, 16 and 21), as does Boston (Nos. 15, 24 and 25). Portland already owns the 13th and 23rd picks and reportedly has agreed to a deal with New Jersey to get No. 22.

The deal was first reported on ESPN.com on Sunday. The Blazers have refused to comment on any potential deals. But Nets team president Rod Thorn said his team was likely to trade away the pick -- he just wouldn't say whether it would go to the Blazers.

Mark Bartelstein, Gill's agent, told The Associated Press the teams were discussing a trade.

Gill appeared in 22 games with the Trail Blazers last season, averaging 2.3 points. He appeared in eight games with the Nets in 2000-2001, when they won 26 games in Byron Scott's first season as coach.

Minnesota, Detroit, Houston, Memphis, Milwaukee and New York do not have first-round picks, and the Bucks traded away their only second-round pick (No. 45) in a deal with the Bobcats on Wednesday in which they acquired forward Zaza Pachulia.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.