Salmons is the Sacramento player generating the most interest.
The Mavericks and Kings have been exchanging proposals involving the 29-year-old for some time. Portland and Oklahoma City also are frequently linked with Salmons.
San Antonio, meanwhile, is in the hunt as well, pursuing Salmons -- with an offer of Bruce Bowen and Ime Udoka -- as a far more affordable trade target for its perimeter rotation than Vince Carter. New Jersey's Carter has tempted the small-market Spurs for days but can be absorbed by them only in a hugely expensive and complicated deal.
The Mavericks have been offering Jerry Stackhouse's virtual expiring contract ($7 million this season, only $2 million guaranteed next season) and Brandon Bass ($826,000) to the Kings since this past summer, when Sacramento was shopping Ron Artest. The biggest obstacle for Dallas on a Salmons deal has been the Kings' insistence that the Mavericks -- lacking draft picks to sweeten the deal -- also take back guard Beno Udrih, who has four years and nearly $27 million remaining on his contract after this season.
There is another complication for interested parties: Sources revealed Tuesday that Salmons has a 15 percent trade kicker in his contract that would require the team that acquires him to pay him a bonus of nearly $2 million and add that figure to its payroll. Salmons otherwise would rank as one of the league's better bargains, earning just $5.1 million this season while averaging 18.3 points and shooting 47.2 percent from the field and 41.8 percent on 3-pointers.
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