One day after his agent claimed the Jazz were not negotiating in good faith, Donyell Marshall said that he hopes a deal can be reached. Tim Buckley of the desert news reports that although Marshall doesn?t like how the negotiations are going, he is still optimistic.

"If I felt I got low-balled from them, that's a situation where I might feel uncomfortable," said Marshall. "In other words," he added, "you don't want the whole negotiating situation to be bitter."

Marshall?s agent, Dwight Manley, questioned the Jazz negotiation technique saying, "the words and the actions don't match up." Jazz VP Kevin O?Connor merely said that negotiations are ?ongoing?.

Manley has suggested a sign and trade for his client may be in order. Toronto is one team that may be interested, but the Jazz want no part of a deal for Hakeem Olajuwon and a future 1st round pick.

Manley has also threatened that Marshall may sign with another team for the mid-level exception, meaning the Jazz would lose Marshall with no compensation. While this tactic is used often, Manly insists this is not an idle threat. "It's never as horrible as it quite seems," Marshall said of negotiations, "but I think the whole thing Dwight is trying to say is we're not afraid to go elsewhere."