Jermaine O'Neal, who can opt out of the final two years of his contract at the end of the upcoming season, said several times over the past year that he and the Pacers should go their separate ways if he couldn't make them an elite team.

"I'm here, I'm happy to be here, I feel good," he said Monday during the team's annual media day. "I like the staff and I like the guys. It should be an exciting year. It's a new year, too. That's the most important part."

Trade rumors could resurface if the Pacers get off to a slow start or if Lakers officials feel like they need to make a move to appease Kobe Bryant.

In the meantime, though, O'Neal doesn't plan on answering trade questions on a daily basis.

"People have conversations and it's either doers or people that just talk about it," he said. "It's been all talk. If they talk about trades, they talk about it. But when you guys talk to me about it, I'm not going to talk about it."