The deal as currently constituted, sources say, would send the expiring contract of Nets forward Mehmet Okur and either Shawne Williams or Johan Petro — along with a protected future first-round pick — to the Blazers for Wallace.
Wallace is a player long admired by Orlando and was part of the three-team trade construction lined up by the Nets in December that nearly brought Dwight Howard to the Nets before the season even started. In that three-team scenario, Orlando would have received Wallace, Nets center Brook Lopez and at least one future first-round pick, while also shedding the contracts of Hedo Turkoglu and Chris Duhon.
To push this latest deal through involving Wallace, New Jersey and Portland must submit a trade agreement to the league office before Thursday’s 3 p.m. ET trade deadline.
New Jersey’s strategy, sources say, is to stockpile as many players and draft picks as possible — as well as maintaining salary-cap space — to make another trade run at Howard or another star to be determined in conjunction with the June draft — before star guard Deron Williams can become a free agent July 1.