Nets Shopping Carter

Link:Vince Carter was a hot topic of discussion yesterday as Nets president Rod Thorn continued his efforts to move his All-Star guard by Thursday's trading deadline.

The Nets aren't interested in continuing to pay Carter "max money," and they know he'll be looking to move on to Orlando this summer when he can opt out of his contract. By trading him by the deadline, they can dictate where he goes.

"Rod's trying everything he can to trade Carter," said one team executive who talked to Thorn. "He'd rather trade Vince than Jason (Kidd). They still look at Kidd as the face of the franchise."

The Clippers, who have had talks before with the Nets about Carter, are still a possibility. All teams other than Orlando risk having Carter walk after the season, unless there's some sort of wink-wink deal reached before this summer.

But to get Thorn to revamp his team, with the Atlantic Division by no means locked up by the Toronto Raptors , he is not going to jump at any offer. Even with Carter's days with the team apparently dwindling, the Nets are going to hold out for a package that will include any combination of the following: a young promising player, players with expiring contracts and a future No. 1 draft pick.