Larry Bird and the Pacers are putting their best efforts forward to squash rumors surrounding defensive specialist Ron Artest being involved in trade talk for unhappy King Peja Stojakovic.

Stojakovic has made it no secret that he is upset that Sacramento let longtime friend Vlade Divac leave town and has gone public stating he wants out.  Rumors have since been running rampant that Indiana is one of the teams pushing the hardest for the sharp shooting Euro, offering the Defensive Player of the Year as bait.

"It's all speculation," Bird said. "Peja wanting to be traded has nothing to do with Ronnie. It's all just talk."

"I don't know why people are so quick to assume we'd even be interested in thinking about trading Ronnie," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "The fact is, there are going to be rumors about this and that. If one guy asks to be traded, everybody looks around. Those things just happen."

Artest's name was mentioned as a possibility after Stojakovic's agent, David Bauman, said that Bird had inquired about such a deal in June.

Bird said he had an informal conversation with Kings director of player personnel Jerry Reynolds before the Pacers traded for Altanta's Stephen Jackson.