Donnie Walsh said the trade sending Deron Williams to the Nets came out of nowhere for him too.  Williams himself said he had no idea that the Jazz were even contemplating trading him.

"No, I didn't. I really didn't," Walsh said. "I probably should have thought about it because of Jerry [Sloan], when he left.  Not that it was Jerry leaving but the franchise could say, 'OK, we've got to go young now and start rebuilding."

But Walsh does not look at it as a lost opportunity.

"Not really. And I'm not going to comment on what I really thought. But I thought something," he added cryptically.

There were rumors over All-Star Weekend that Williams had told people close to him that he wanted to join the Knicks in 2012.  In a press conference announcing the trade, Utah's front office executives said they thought Williams had his eye on playing in a larger media market. 

The Jazz also said that the Knicks were never contacted and the Nets' offer was the only one the team even considered in a trade for Williams.