J.J. Redick and Jared Dudley are heading to Los Angeles as new members of the Clippers.
The Lakers, meanwhile, are hoping Dwight Howard stays put.
A person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Tuesday that a three-team trade is in place that sends Redick to Los Angeles from the Milwaukee Bucks and Eric Bledsoe from the Clippers to the Phoenix Suns.
The trade on a busy second day of NBA free agency will also send Dudley from the Suns to the Clippers and Caron Butler from the Clippers to the Suns. The Bucks will get two second-round draft picks, according to the person who requested anonymity because deals can’t officially be made public until July 10 under NBA rules.
Yahoo! Sports, which first reported the trade, said Redick gets a four-year, $27 million sign-and-trade contract as part of the exchange.
Also in Los Angeles, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and other representatives of the team met for about two hours with Howard to make their pitch for keeping him in town.
“At the meeting, we told him how important he is to the Lakers team, franchise, fans and community, and why we feel this is the best place for him to continue his career,” Kupchak said in a statement released by the team. “We are hopeful that Dwight decides to remain a Laker.”
Howard became one of the NBA’s most coveted free agents when free agency opened Monday. The Lakers have made no secret they want to keep him, but the Houston Rockets, the Dallas Mavericks and the Atlanta Hawks also are interested.
Howard’s first, and perhaps only, season in Los Angeles was a disappointment, ending in a first-round playoff sweep, and he acknowledged being unhappy at times. But the Lakers want to keep the former Defensive Player of the Year, believing the extra year and about $30 million more they can give him will provide a huge advantage.
Free agent power forward David West has agreed to a deal that will keep him in Indiana for at least three more seasons.
A person with knowledge of the negotiations confirmed the deal. It could be the biggest move of the offseason for the Pacers, who made re-signing West their top priority. The Central Division champs will now have all five starters back from a team that pushed Miami to seven games in the Eastern Conference finals.
The Minnesota Timberwolves entered unrestricted free agency with two priorities at the top of their list — add a shooting guard with range and bringing back Chase Budinger. Within a matter of a couple of hours, new team president Flip Saunders accomplished both goals.
The Timberwolves agreed to a four-year, $30 million deal with shooting guard Kevin Martin and a three-year, $16 million with Budinger, according to two people with knowledge of the deals. Budinger’s deal includes a player option for the final season. The people requested anonymity because an official announcement has not been made.
The agreements were two strong moves to address the team’s woeful outside shooting last season. The Wolves ranked dead last in 3-point shooting percentage last year, and Saunders made it a point to get more shooters to complement point guard Ricky Rubio’s slick passing.
Both players are intimately familiar with coach Rick Adelman’s corner offense, a system that is predicated on quick passing and moving without the ball.
Martell Webster agreed to a four-year deal to stay with the Washington Wizards, and veteran center Nazr Mohammed said he’s remaining with the Chicago Bulls.
Bringing back Webster was a top priority for the Wizards. The eight-year veteran swingman averaged a career-high 11.4 points last season and was a respected locker room leader. He could also serve as a mentor for Otto Porter, chosen No. 3 overall by Washington last month in the draft.
Webster tweeted a video of himself saying: “I’m back. You got me for four years, D.C.”
Mohammed announced on Twitter that he will re-sign with his hometown team, saying it was “an easy decision” and he was looking forward to “going to battle with a group of guys who never made excuses and just tried to find a way to win.”
The Dallas Mavericks are set to add Israeli point guard Gal Mekel, with his agent, Sam Porter, saying the 6-foot-3 Mekel has agreed to join the Mavericks on a three-year deal with $2.3 million guaranteed.
Mekel played two years at Wichita State in 2006-08, and his pro team in Israel, Maccabi Haifa, won a league title in 2013. He will be the second Israeli player in the NBA. Free agent forward Omri Casspi was the first.
Tony Allen is staying with the Memphis Grizzlies, re-signing with the team he helped lead to the Western Conference finals last season.
A person familiar with the agreement told the AP that Allen has signed a four-year contract worth $20 million. Allen, one of the league’s best perimeter defenders, was the leading vote-getter for the All-Defensive team and finished fifth in voting for the Defensive Player of the Year, an award won by Grizzlies teammate Marc Gasol.