The Detroit Pistons will trade forward Rodney White to the Denver Nuggets for a first-round pick and two players, a basketball source said Tuesday.

The source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the Pistons will receive 6-foot-11 Chinese center Menk Bateer and former Detroit forward Don Reid.

The deal will likely be made next week.  Since Reid was traded recently, he can't be traded again until October 1.

The Detroit News is reporting that the Pistons are desperately working on a trade which could send second year forward Rodney White, the ninth pick in the 2001 NBA draft, to the Denver Nuggets.

White, a player who Michael Jordan and the Washington Wizards coveted whilst owning the first overall pick in the 2001 NBA Draft, only played in 16 games as a rookie last year and doesn't seem to have improved during the summer league this year.  As it stands right now he is the teams fourth best small forward behind Michael Curry, Corliss Williamson and rookie Tayshaun Prince.  Rather than let White continue to deteriorate on the injured list, something which would be counter productive for both White and the Pistons, team president Joe Dumars is looking to cut his losses and trade him to a team who can afford to be patient.

"Nothing has been decided for sure," said John Hammond, Pistons vice president of basketball. "Something may happen later in the week."

Nuggets General Manager Kiki Vandeweghe said he would not confirm or deny any trade, but added, "We have some little things we are pursuing but no blockbusters."

There are several different packages being considered from Denver, but as Chris McCosky of the Detroit News reports all of them include a future first-round draft pick (Which Perry Ferrell of the Detroit Free Press reports would be the pick that Denver acquired from Milwaukee last year). A strongly rumored package currently being reported involved Chinese center Mengke Bateer, former Piston Don Reid, and a first round pick. Reid, in the final year of his contract, will make $1.3 million. Bateer, a restricted free agent, would have to be signed -- probably close to the NBA minimum for second-year players ($512,435) -- then traded. [RealGM Note: Since Don Reid was recently traded from Orlando to Denver he cannot be immediately traded to another team in conjunction with other players.  This is effective until the 1st October, after which time he is no longer restricted.  For a list of players currently affected by trade restrictions click here.]

The Associated Press reports that investigators have found what appears to be blood traces on Bison Dele?s 55-foot catamaran. Authorities found traces of the substance on the inside and the outside of the vessel, said Michel Marotte, Tahiti's chief prosecutor. The findings must be verified in a laboratory "but it does seem to be blood traces,'' he told The Associated Press on Friday.

Dele's brother, Miles Dabord who is also known as Kevin Williams, was in a coma and in critical condition at a hospital in Chula Vista. He was found unconscious in Mexico last week. The FBI arrested him Thursday on a fraud charge after learning his identity. Dabord allegedly used his brother's former name, Brian Williams, while trying to buy $152,000 in gold in Phoenix earlier this month.

Dabord's mother, Patricia Phillips, told the Los Angeles Times she fears her son may have tried to commit suicide in a fit of guilt, somehow believing he was responsible for his brother's disappearance. On Friday, she stood at his bedside in a San Diego hospital. "I wanted to hug him, to stroke his face, to hold his hand,'' she said.

In a Sept. 13 telephone call, Phillips said Dabord sounded groggy and spoke of committing suicide. He told her he hadn't killed his brother and that he wanted her to know this before ending his life, she said.

Marotte said there is reason to think that Dele, his 30-year-old girlfriend Serena Karlan and Bertrand Saldo, the captain of Dele's sailboat, were killed July 6 or 7 during a layover in Tahiti. Investigators are working on the suspicion that a single person committed the killings, and "that is the brother of the victim, Kevin Williams.''

"We presume that the bodies of these people must be in the sea, the ocean, and will probably never be found,'' said Marotte, who speculated that the bodies could have been weighted down to sink them. "But we're still looking.''

The LA Times adds that Dabord may not live to tell his side of the story. Law enforcement officials admitted Saturday that they might never know exactly what happened to a missing former NBA player and two others who are presumed dead in the waters of the South Pacific.

Dabord is "dead, living only through artificial means," his mother said. Patricia Phillips said doctors have discovered severe damage to her son's brain--injuries they have told her are the result of an insulin overdose and Dabord not taking his asthma medication.

The Associated Press reports: Miles Dabord, wanted by the FBI in connection with the disappearance of his brother and former NBA player Bison Dele, was under arrest but comatose in a San Diego-area hospital Thursday night.
Dabord was checked into the hospital by an unidentified person as a "John Doe," but the Chula Vista police department ran his fingerprints and his identity was discovered. Chula Vista is a small city south of San Diego.

Meanwhile, divers in Tahiti searched waters off the South Pacific island of Moorea as part of their investigation into the disappearance of Dele, police officials said.

But the divers in the Maharepa lagoon, on the island's northern coast, where Dele and his girlfriend, Serena Karlan, spent time before they vanished July 8, failed to find any clues Wednesday, the officials said. Bertrand Saldo, a French skipper sailing with the couple, also is missing.

Dele, who used to be called Brian Williams, was a member of the Chicago Bulls' 1997 NBA championship team.

Citing police records, The Washington Post reported that Dele's mother told police that Dabord is "capable of extremely violent behavior" and has had problems with alcohol and illegal drugs.

According to the Post report, Patricia Phillips, Dele's mother, told investigators for the Phoenix Police Department early this month that she was concerned for Dele and that Dabord's behavior becomes more aggressive when he takes steroids to treat chronic asthma.

Dabord was arrested Thursday by the FBI on a fugitive warrant out of Phoenix but remains hospitalized. According to William Gore of the San Diego FBI office, the federal fugitive charge will be dismissed on Friday and Dabord will remain in custody while he awaits extradition to Phoenix.

Dabord, also known as Kevin Williams, was originally charged by the Phoenix police with fraud after he was allegedly discovered using his brother's identification. Dele was previously know as Brian Williams. The federal warrant is on a charge of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. Dabord is also wanted for questioning in the disappearance of his brother and two others.

Chris McCoskey of the Detroit News reports that the Pistons may have another roster move up their sleeves. With 12 days before the start of training camp, Pistons President Joe Dumars might not be done tweaking his roster. "It's not training camp yet," Dumars said, with a playful smile.

With 14 guaranteed contracts, the Pistons are stocked at the guard and small forward positions. They could use some help at the center, though. We will be able to man the center position," Dumars said. "We have four guys (Cliff Robinson, Zeljko Rebraca, Ben Wallace and Mehmet Okur) who could rotate to that position. So, there is no real urgency to do something. But you look at it and say, 'Yeah, it would help if we had one more big guy.' "

Second-year forward Rodney White and veteran shooting guard Hubert Davis are two players who would seem to have limited roles and could be expendable. But finding a suitable center, as always, is easier said than done. "You talk about depth at center, well, going out and adding another 7-footer doesn't necessarily mean you've improved your depth," Dumars said.

Prosecutors in Tahiti made the decision to open a murder investigation into the disappearance of former NBA player Bison Dele based on comments from the former girlfriend of Dele's older brother, the Los Angeles Times has reported.

The police official told the newspaper that Erica Weise told the FBI that Dele's older brother, Miles Dabord, informed her in a telephone conversation of a struggle aboard Dele's boat, the Hakuna Matata, that resulted in the deaths of Dele, his girlfriend, Serena Karlan, and the boat's captain, Bertrand Saldo.

Dabord reportedly deflected blame from himself, claiming during the phone call that the fight was started by Dele, the Times reported.

The call was reported to the FBI and the Sonoma County, Calif., Sheriff's Office. Sonoma County deputies confirmed they had received a phone call and forwarded the information to the FBI.

On Tuesday, Tahitian officials upgraded the investigation from a preliminary inquiry to a premeditated murder investigation. A premeditated murder investigation is the most serious level of any homicide charge under French law, the chief prosecutor for the territory of French Polynesia, Michel Marotte, told the Rocky Mountain News.

Dele, Karlan and Saldo have been missing since they left Papeete, Tahiti's capital city, aboard Dele's boat July 4. The boat was later found -- repainted and renamed -- in a private slip on Tahiti. Witnesses have said Dabord was seen docking the empty boat on July 15. He left the island two days later.

Dabord is wanted on two arrest warrants issued in connection with his allegedly posing as his brother to buy more than $150,000 in gold coins in Phoenix. Dabord is still at large and was last spotted in Tijuana, Mexico.

Meanwhile, an international team of five investigators continued their examination of the boat. Investigators wearing masks and dressed in white head-to-toe suits searched the boat for 90 minutes Tuesday.

"No evidence of anything unusual was discovered on their initial survey of the boat," Marotte told the Rocky Mountain News. "But it's still possible that they could find something in their more detailed investigation as they clean up the boat."

A cursory search conducted earlier by French authorities found no blood stains or other signs of foul play, police officials have said.

Brian D. Crecente of the Rocky Morning News reports that the Bison Dele missing person investigation is about to become a murder investigation. Tahitian officials now believe Dele and two others are dead.

"I think they are dead," Michel Marotte, chief prosecutor for the French territory, told the Rocky Mountain News on Sunday. "We consider that this could be a murder investigation." An arrest warrant has been issued against Miles Dabord, Dele?s brother. Dabord is being sought by the FBI for flight from justice. He was being investigated for attempting to buy gold coins under the name Brian Williams, Dele?s former name and the identity he uses in his financial records.

Dabord left New Zealand on a sailboat with Dele, Dele's girlfriend, Serena Karlan of Boulder, and captain Bertrand Saldo of France on May 2. A month and a half later the 55-foot catamaran, the Hakuna Matata, sailed into the French Polynesian Islands. The boat left again on July 4, listing only Dele, Karlan and Saldo as passengers, and it was missing until it was found empty last week.

The boat, repainted and renamed the Arabella, was discovered Thursday morning docked in a private slip in the hamlet of Taravao, about 40 miles from Tahiti's capital city of Papeete, Marotte said. According to the Los Angeles Times, Dabord signed the registration slip at the dock July 15 under an alias. He left Tahiti two days later.

Forensic experts from France and the Unites States met with Marotte and other Tahitian authorities Sunday to discuss the case. Marotte said no one had yet gone into the boat to inspect it. "Nothing on the exterior of the boat shows signs of a violent act," he said Sunday.

Law enforcement officials are concentrating their search for Dabord in Mexico. Mexican police, under the direction of the FBI, located a hotel room in Tijuana on Thursday with personal items belonging to Dabord.

The news on Bison Dele's disappearance.  Brian D. Crecente reports.

His brother is being looked for by police.

Hope they find the former BW.  I've got a feeling they'll turn up somewhere.  I'm guessing Guam?

The Associated Press reports: The catamaran belonging to missing former NBA player Bison Dele has been found in Tahiti, but Dele, his girlfriend and the boat's captain remain missing, according to a newspaper report.

Dele's 57-foot sailboat, the Hakuna Matata, has been docked in the town of Taravao since July 8, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday. Military and civilian police were expected to soon begin an investigation aboard the craft, a French police official said.

FBI officials in San Francisco also sent a forensics team Thursday night to Tahiti to aid in the investigation.

Dele, formerly known as Brian Williams, his girlfriend, Serena Karlan, and captain Bertrand Saldo have been missing since early July.

The boat was found by Patrique Humbert, a charter boat captain and friend of Saldo.

As part of its investigation, the FBI has launched a manhunt for Dele's older brother, Miles Dabord, also known as Kevin Eugene Williams.

Federal agents raided a Tijuana hotel room that officials believed Dabord stayed in as recently as Wednesday and his car also was impounded by the FBI in Santa Clara County, the Times reported.

Dabord, 35, had sailed with Dele, 33, and Karlan, 30, through early July.

Police in Phoenix detained Dabord on Sept. 5 after he said he was Brian Williams and signed receipts with that name while trying to buy $152,000 in gold. He showed his younger brother's passport as identification before he was taken into custody by police.

Dabord was released without being arrested.

Dabord has been estranged from his mother, Patricia Phillips, since January 1999, but called her Wednesday and threatened suicide.

Phillips told the Times on Thursday night that she had not heard from Dabord again.

K.C. Johnson and Todd Lighty report that the Bison dele disappearance case has taken a strange turn. The FBI has joined the investigation and they are looking for Dele's brother, Kevin Williams for questioning.

Kevin Williams was questioned by Phoenix Police last week after he allegedly tried to buy about $150,000 in gold coins while posing as Dele. He has not been seen since, but his mother, Patricia Phillips, said she had received anguished calls from him Tuesday and Wednesday.

In those calls, Phillips told the Tribune, "[Kevin] said, 'Mom, I just need you to believe me. I wouldn't hurt my brother. I need to know that you love me before I die. I can't go to prison. You know my personality is the type that can't survive in prison. Nobody will believe my story.'"

Dele, his girlfriend, Serena Karlan and Bertrand Saldo, the captain of Dele's 55-foot catamaran were sailing from Tahiti to Hawaii two months ago when the vessel disappeared. "We're involved in this case as a missing persons investigation," FBI spokesman Andrew Black said. "We're interested in the disappearance of those three people. "One of the individuals we are actively looking to speak with is Kevin Eugene Williams."

Dele has not been heard from since July 8th. The mystery deepened a month later when a man who identified himself as Brian Williams tried to buy a quantity of 1-ounce gold coins from Certified Mint, a precious metal and investment house in Phoenix. Dele, who had played at the University of Arizona as Brian Williams, apparently kept his financial records, such as banking accounts, in that name.

After learning that the bank was investigating whether the check for the coins was fraudulent, arrangements were made to stake out Certified Mint. When the man arrived to pick up the coins, he was taken into custody by the Phoenix Police.

Detectives questioned the man for several hours. But they released him, a department spokesman said, because they did not have enough evidence to bring charges, even though the man had three credit cards and a passport issued in Brian Williams' name.

Phillips said authorities told her the FBI believes Kevin Williams had fled to Mexico.