Divac Decides Not To Block Trade To Charlotte Hornets

Vlade Divac has backed away from his retirement threats and consented to a trade that could give both the Charlotte Hornets and the Los Angeles Lakers the big man they covet.

Divac’s agent said Monday that his client has agreed to a deal that would send him from the Lakers to the Hornets for the rights to first-round draft choice Kobe Bryant.

“Vlade has decided to go ahead and not stand in the way of a trade to Charlotte,” Marc Fleisher told The Associated Press. The Hornets, one of the worst defensive and rebounding teams in the NBA, would get a mobile center solid in both areas during his seven seasons in the league.

The Lakers, in addition to getting a chance to develop the 17-year-old Bryant, would free some room under the salary cap to pursue Orlando free-agent center Shaquille O’Neal. Divac is set to make more than $8.5 million over the next two seasons.

Divac surprised the Hornets by saying he would retire before he would agree to any trade that moved him from Los Angeles. Divac’s wife, Ana, is an aspiring actress, and feels her best chance to succeed in the industry would be for her to stay close to Hollywood.

K.C. Jones, who guided the Boston Celtics to a pair of NBA championships in the 1980s, was named an assistant to current coach M.L. Carr.