In a monumental trade that could set up what many expect to be an intense period of player movement centered around NBA Draft 2004, the Washington Wizards traded Jerry Stackhouse, Christian Laettner and the number 5 overall pick to the Dallas Mavericks for the Sixth Man of the Year, Antawn Jamison.  

The trade may be both a signal of the active off-season that is to come as well as a key catalyst that could have a direct impact on additional NBA player movement.  

That is to say, the Mavericks held out for the Wizards' first-round pick and may use the acquired Draft selection as bait for a bigger catch.  There is growing speculation that the Dallas brass is on the verge of putting together a package to acquire the NBA's most dominant center, Shaquille O'Neal.  

Jamison, 6'9", turned in 14.8 points and 6.3 rebounds a game off the Mavericks' bench this past season.  He will not only be a starter for the Wizards but could emerge as one of the leading forwards in the Eastern Conference.  The 225-pound Jamison will be re-united with former Golden State Warriors teammate Gilbert Arenas.

Regarding salaries and money:  Stackhouse, a former all-star, has three more years left on his contract, with remaining payouts of $22.5 million. Jamison will make $12.5 million next season with an option year to follow.

This is the first major trade of the new Wizards' front office led by president of basketball operations Ernie Grunfeld, and character determinations may have played a role in the deal. Indeed, there is much reason to believe that the Wizard brass had come to consider both Stackhouse and Laettner to be negative influences on the club.  

The trade also reflects the Wizards' reluctance to continue gambling on unproven talent.  Tonight's Draft will be particularly loaded with young players who have little or no college basketball experience.  "It's probably not a Draft that's going to produce a lot of impact players right away," Grunfeld recently told the media at the NBA's pre-Draft camp in Chicago.