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The Denver Nuggets have agreed to terms with Nene for 6-yrs/$60 M. Think the market for big men is tight? Nene is a career 11/6 guy…Ben Wallace was disappointed with the Pistons’ offer (4-yrs/$48 M) and he’s thinking about taking the Bulls’ offer of 4-yrs/$52 M. I’m surprised that Wallace is considering leaving Detroit – $12 M a year is pretty good money for a 32 year-old center that shoots around 40% from the free throw line…Bobby Jackson agreed to a deal with the Hornets, terms undisclosed.

Carmelo Anthony has already accepted the maximum contract extension from the Denver Nuggets, so why hasn’t LeBron James done the same thing?

Appearing at a Cavaliers’ press conference scheduled to introduce the team’s new draft picks (Shannon Brown and Daniel Gibson), James wouldn’t comment on the status of the extension.

“I’m not talking about it today,” a smiling James said at a news conference held by the Cavaliers to introduce new draft picks Shannon Brown and Daniel Gibson. “You’ll have to ask them [the Cavaliers].”

But the team, fearful of doing anything to upset James or break the league’s gag order during the free agency moratorium from July 1-12, is reluctant to discuss much about the star’s future.

“This is one you don’t want to stub your toe on rules,” general manager Danny Ferry said. “We’re going to make a call and allow things to unfold from there. Rushing is not a necessity.”

But Cleveland fans aren’t as patient. They’ve been burned before, crushed by promises made by the likes of Art Modell, Jim Thome and Carlos Boozer, who all said they would stay and left anyway.

If James is sure he wants to re-sign, I’m not sure why he would be playing it so coy. He must want something from the team to make them sweat like this. Does he want more say in front office decisions? More power over the direction of the franchise?

He must know that every day he waits, his fans in Cleveland will grow more and more worried about what he’s going to do. Why would he put them through that if he’s intent on re-signing? I wouldn’t say that something is up, but something might be up.

Or maybe he’s having trouble getting his agent, Leon Rose, on the phone. Rose represents #1 draft pick Andrea Bargnani and Allen Iverson, who has been the subject of a ton of trade rumors. Maybe Rose is the guy holding up the deal. James even joked about his agent:

“I hope he [Rose] can find some time for me,” James said.

This might be an interesting couple of weeks in Cleveland.

Peja Stojakovic, once considered a lock to re-sign with the Indiana Pacers, agreed a 5-year/$62 M contract with the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. This gives the team a sharpshooter to play alongside Chris Paul and David West, but $12 M a season seems like a lot to pay for the 29 year-old…the signing means that the Pacers didn’t get anything in return for Ron Artest, other than half of a season from Stojakovic…Jason Terry re-signed with the Mavericks for $50 M over six years. Will this delay the development of Devin Harris?…Vladimir Radmanovic is staying in L.A., but won’t be playing for the Clippers. He and the Lakers agreed to a 5-year/$30+ M mid-level exception deal…The Clippers wasted no time in replacing Radmanovic, agreeing to a 4-year/$24 M deal with Tim Thomas, while also locking Sam Cassell into a 2-year/$13 M deal.

The speculation for weeks now were that the Bucks were offering up Jamaal Magloire and Mo Williams in the hopes of landing an athletic power forward. With that in mind, Milwaukee started dealing with Toronto, but the Raptors wanted T.J. Ford instead, and they got their man.

Ford averaged 12.2 points and a team-high 6.6 assists in 72 games last season following a spinal-cord injury that sidelined him for a season and a half.

The 6-foot-11 Villanueva, selected seventh overall in the 2005 draft, averaged 13.0 points and 6.4 rebounds in 81 games for the Raptors. The former Connecticut star set Toronto rookie records for points with 48 on March 26 at Milwaukee and rebounds with 18 on April 2 against New Orleans.

“Acquiring Charlie takes care of a primary need we had going into the summer,” Harris said. “He’s a gifted power forward who knows how to score both inside and outside. … The outstanding rookie season he had last year is only the beginning of what he’s capable of achieving.”

Ford is a dynamic player and a fan-favorite in Milwaukee. There will be many Bucks fans that will be upset about the move. In Ford, the Raptors got a Steve Nash-like point guard to fill the same role in GM Bryan Colangelo’s up-tempo system.

Pending another move, the Bucks could start Williams, Michael Redd, Bobby Simmons, Villanueva and Bogut, giving the team one of the best young lineups in the league. It is important for Milwaukee to lock up Williams before his stock gets any higher.