Union to discuss ball, officials

LAS VEGAS — Two hot topics are expected to be discussed when union representatives from teams throughout the NBA, in town for the NBA All-Star Game, meet here.

"We'll probably go back over some of the issues related to the ball and officials," said Jazz guard Derek Fisher, who will formally succeed Toronto's Antonio Davis as president of the NBA Players Association — a post Fisher essentially has been handling since the start of the season.

NBA officials were ordered to take less flak from players responding to unfavorable calls this season, and, after an initial hullabaloo, everyone generally seems to be getting along.

The issue of leather ball vs. synthetic, however, caused quite a stir earlier in the season.

The league replaced its traditional leather with a composite version, and players protested vehemently — so much so NBA commissioner David Stern authorized a change back to leather at the start of the calendar year.

Since then, manufacturer Spaulding has been working on an alternative synthetic ball — and before this one is introduced, a committee of active players will want a say before the union gives its okay.

(The earlier non-leather ball was tested only by former players now working in the broadcast field, including ex-Jazz point guard Mark Jackson.)

"We'll really just try to get a lot of headway, a lot of work done," Fisher said, "as far as making sure that guys are on the same page with what our thoughts are going forward, knowing that the (ball issue) is probably going to be something that gets revisited at the end of the season."

TRADE TALK: No one from Utah is listed in ESPN.com NBA writer Chris Sheridan's list of the top-10 players most likely to get traded in the next week, which is topped by Miami's James Posey and also includes (tied for ninth) New Jersey teammates Jason Kidd and Vince Carter.

But listed at No. 5 is Corey Maggette of the Los Angeles Clippers, who was once signed by the Jazz to a free-agent offer sheet that the Clippers later matched.

According to Sheridan: "If it were up to Maggette or coach Mike Dunleavy, who get along like oil and water, Maggette would already be an ex-Clipper. The problem is that Clippers owner Donald Sterling has a particular fondness for Maggette, and the owner still thinks the two can coexist. But the most recent tiff between coach and player might make Sterling reconsider, and the Jazz, Heat and Spurs are all still very much interested."