In a now-it-can-be-told admission, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak acknowledged that the trade late last season that brought forward-center Pau Gasol to the Lakers resulted in the Lakers giving up less than the Memphis Grizzlies originally sought.

In that blockbuster deal, that essentially helped catapult the Lakers to the Western Conference title and into the NBA Finals, Gasol was acquired Feb. 1 in exchange for center Kwame Brown, veteran guard Aaron McKie, rookie guard Javaris Crittenton, two future first-round draft picks, and the rights to Gasol’s younger brother, forward Marc Gasol, whom the Lakers used a second-round pick in the 2007 NBA draft to select.

The Lakers had a pair of second-round picks last year. Gasol was selected 48th overall, eight picks after the Lakers drafted Sun. The younger Gasol spent the 2007-2008 season playing in Europe.

In the end, the Lakers were able to hold on to Sun, primarily because of the scouting report that assistant general manager Ronnie Lester prepared for Kupchak, after Lester evaluated Sun in Singapore, a month before the trade was consummated.

So, instead of wearing the black and blue colors of the Memphis Grizzlies, Sun will be in purple and gold, after signing a two-year guaranteed contract last month with the Lakers.

The Timberwolves, who begin official practices next week in Mankato, Minn., have 14 players with guaranteed contracts. The most allowed by the NBA is 15. The team is not looking to make any trades.

Owner Glen Taylor, on expectations this season: "Last year, when we put this group together, it was a year to build, to get experience. This year is different; just because last year we let a guy play a lot of minutes, if he doesn't produce this year, he won't play a lot of minutes. It will be more on productivity than youth. It'll be winning rather than getting experience."

Delonte West's contract is $3.8 million in 2008-09; $4.3 million in 2009-10; and $4.6 million ($500,000 guaranteed) in 2010-11. A few fans e-mailed wondering if the Cavs were serious about starting Mo Williams and West together, because neither is more than 6-3 (no matter what height they are listed at). The answer is yes, it is under serious consideration depending upon how they play together in training camp.

West's contract pushed the Cavs' payroll for the season over $90 million, and that ranks them No. 2. Only the Knicks ($101 million) are higher. It's believed the luxury-tax limit for this season is $71 million, which means teams must pay a tax for every dollar spent over $71 million. For the Cavs, that will be an extra $19 million with their $90 million payroll. Give Dan Gilbert credit, the Cavs' owner is digging deep. Gilbert is a reason you should never assume James will leave. The owner is making major commitments to winning, and James knows that.

The Cavs are expected to have Ronald Dupree in camp. The 6-7 small forward has spent parts of five seasons with Detroit, Chicago and Minnesota. He's 27 and in 154 NBA games, he's averaged 3.6 points. He has a decent chance to grab one of the 15 roster spots.

The future of Andre Miller with the 76ers can become an official discussion point.

That is because Miller, who has been without an agent, agreed to have Andy Miller represent him.

Andy Miller confirmed yesterday that he has been in touch with Sixers president/general manager Ed Stefanski to set up an introductory meeting. Andy Miller also represents Sixers first-round draft choice Marreese Speights.

Andre Miller, 32, is entering the final season of his contract, listed at $10 million. Most observers thought he was last season's team Most Valuable Player.

"Ed and I are just going to talk about everyone's perspective," Andy Miller said. "Andre is optimistic about where the team is and is excited about the immediate future."

I'm getting some questions about Juan Dixon possibly making a return to the Wizards. Here's what I can tell you: The Wizards indeed have interest but I'm hearing that to this point, they are only willing to sign him to a non-guaranteed deal for the vet minimum. In other words, he'd have to come to camp and make the team to make any real money.

Lakers executive Mitch Kupchak claims that the Grizzles where looking to acquire Sun Yue in a trade, according to NBA.com.

"Memphis also wanted Sun in the trade, but we wanted to keep at least one of those two guys so Memphis wanted Marc [Gasol] and we are happy that we were able to keep Sun Yue, because we liked him when we drafted him," Kupchak said.

Raja Bell will probably be the last Sun to come in town, although he had been in and out once already. But Bell has been playing regularly with a group of NBA players in Miami.

Although Alando Tucker is impressing people this summer, consider that the Suns shipped Strawberry and Banks away after being disappointed in them and Miami is already trying to move Banks.

The buzz out of voluntary workouts of late has been about rookie Robin Lopez. It's never been a question that he would contribute immediately. The question about him has become just how good he can be.

The team is in the process of finalizing a training camp roster but I can confirm that Linton Johnson and DeMarr Johnson among the players who are in line so far. DeMarr Johnson is an intriguing guy because he can swing between the 2 and the 3 and he has starting experience in the league. He played five games with the Spurs last season after stints with Atlanta, the Knicks and Denver. He has started a total of 176 games since 2000-2001.

Linton Johnson is a 6-8 forward who has appeared in eight games over two seasons with Toronto and Phoenix. Both Johnson's would be in line to push Dominic McGuire as potential backups to Caron Butler. As I've reported in the past, the team would really like to find a reliable backup at the 3 in order to reduce Caron's load and in order to be prepared should he go down again.

Clearly, the issue remains a delicate one, as Livingston, 23, works his way back from a devastating knee injury suffered in the middle of the 2006-07 season. And while the Trail Blazers appear to be frontrunners, the Timberwolves still maintain interest, as, possibly, does the Heat, which opens camp a week from today.

The situation remains fluid, which has Thomas being cautious and economical with his words. When it comes to semantics, Riley rarely lets words get in the way.