Ben Gordon was probably always trade bait, but he officially became persona non grata in Charlotte after reportedly disrespecting his head coach Mike Dunlap during a recent practice.
Since the spat, rumors involving Gordon started breaking the surface, including a reported swap with the Raptors that Sean posted about last week.
Sean also posted on a report that Gordon and his $13.2 million contract could be moved to the Brooklyn Nets for Kris Humphries.
Well, that deal is reportedly dead, according to Nets Daily:
After Sam Amico of FOX Sports tweeted that the Nets had "secured Kris Humphries-for-Ben Gordon trade with Bobcats, but waiting to see what happens with Hawks' Josh Smith first," the front office went into overdrive. Sources strongly denied the report to multiple writers, even noting that the deal was dead.
Here's a sampling...
Adrian Wojnarowski: The Brooklyn Nets are no longer considering a deal for Charlotte's Ben Gordon, league source tells Y! Sports.
Howard Beck: Received an emphatic denial that Nets have agreed to any Humphries/Gordon deal. They don't want Gordon, period.
David Aldridge: As @Howard Beck reported, Nets strongly--"100 percent"--deny reports of Humphries/Gordon trade. They told CHA Wed. nothing would happen.
Funny thing, though: A lot of times, the rumors that are denied the hardest have the most legs. We shall see.