If NBA trade rumors suggests one thing right now, it's that Devin Harris will almost assuredly be traded somewhere by the New Jersey Nets by Thursday's deadline. The Nets have floated Harris all season, and were once hoping to include him in a Carmelo Anthony trade. That fell apart when 'Melo went to the New York Knicks, leaving the Portland Trail Blazers and Dallas Mavericks as the top remaining suitors for the former All-Star point guard.
Al Iannazzone of the Bergen Record reports that the Mavericks are the favorites to land Harris. The Nets want Caron Butler's expiring contract, rookie Dominique Jones and a first-round pick in exchange for Harris. ESPN.com's Marc Stein reports that the Mavericks will only give up Butler.
Harris, of course, came into the league with the Mavericks. He thrived there as a young scoring point guard, but Dallas, looking to get over the top, dealt him to New Jersey in exchange for veteran star Jason Kidd in 2008. Dallas sent New Jersey a couple of picks, too, but the Nets flipped those and, all told, haven't gotten much out of the deal.
Whether Harris would start over Kidd in Dallas or join Jason Terry's bench crew remains to be seen. Iannazzone reports the Nets are seeking, in addition to the expiring contracts of Andre Miller and Joel Przybilla, former No. 1 pick Greg Oden from the Blazers. That is almost assuredly not going to happen.