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David Morway resigned Tuesday as general manager of the Indiana Pacers amid reports that Larry Bird is on the way out, too.
Morway was hired by the Pacers in 1999 and had been GM since 2008. The Indianapolis Star reported Tuesday that Bird is expected to leave the Pacers, citing an unidentified person with direct knowledge of the situation. The Pacers and owner Herb Simon declined comment.
The 55-year-old Bird was Pacers coach from 1997-2000, taking the team to its only NBA Finals appearance that last year, before returning to the front office in 2003. He took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when Donnie Walsh left to become the New York Knicks' president.
This year, Bird was the NBA Executive of the Year after building a tough, young team that lost to eventual champion Miami in six games. He is the only person in league history to win that award, the MVP award and Coach of the Year.
Bird has spent the last four years building the team into an Eastern Conference contender and said a month ago that he was willing to stay. He indicated then that he had not yet met with Simon to discuss his future.
His status with the team had been the subject of speculation for months. He had stayed with the Pacers on a season-by-season basis, discussing whether to return with Simon each offseason.
Morway's departure comes literally on the eve of the NBA Draft, where Indiana was scheduled to pick No. 26 overall on Thursday night.
T-wolves trade pick
The Minnesota Timberwolves acquired swingman Chase Budinger from the Houston Rockets in exchange for the 18th overall pick in the draft. Houston went 34-32 last season and missed the playoffs for the third straight year. The Rockets now have the 14th, 16th and 18th selections in the draft. Budinger averaged 9.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and shot 40.2 percent from 3-point range in his third season with the Rockets.
Pistons, Bobcats deal
The Detroit Pistons traded guard Ben Gordon and a future first-round draft choice to the Charlotte Bobcats for swingman Corey Maggette. Gordon averaged 12.5 points last season, including a 45-point outing at Denver in which he tied his own NBA record by making nine 3-pointers without a miss. The NBA's Sixth Man of the Year in 2005 with Chicago spent three disappointing seasons in Detroit, averaging 12.4 points.
By trading him Tuesday with two years left on his contract, the Pistons saved $15 million, according to a person familiar with the deal.
Maggette was limited to 32 games last season because of injuries, averaging 15 points. The 13-year veteran has averaged 16.2 points in his career.
Stoudemire fined
Amare Stoudemire has been fined $50,000 by the NBA after the New York Knicks star tweeted a gay slur. Stu Jackson, the league's executive vice president of basketball operations, announced the fine Tuesday in a release, calling Stoudemire's language offensive and derogatory.
Stoudemire apologized Sunday to a fan for using the slur in response to a crude tweet in which the fan admonished the All-Star to "make up for this past season."
Around the league
Knicks • New York says J.R. Smith has declined his second-year contract option and will become a free agent.
Celtics • The NBA has awarded the Boston a 2013 second-round pick of the Oklahoma City Thunder as part of a trade disclosure dispute ruling involving Jeff Green, who sat out this season after heart surgery. Commissioner David Stern determined Tuesday there was no evidence of bad faith or intent to withhold information on the part of the Thunder, but that their cardiologists had knowledge about Green that was not shared with their own team management and should have been disclosed to the Celtics.