How many trades do you think you will make before the week is over?
I’m not certain, but we think somewhere between three and four. There’s not a lot, but we do have some things going. We have a few things on the bubble and we’ll continue to work diligently at trying to bring a couple more to fruition.

Do you think Emeka Okafor will be available at number two?
I think there are some vacillations between number one in terms of whether it will be (Dwight) Howard or Okafor, but the one thing that I’m real clear about now is that we will be pleased starting our basketball team with either one of those young men. I think they represent what we would like to become in terms of character, competitiveness and the talent.

Will you take the big salary guys in the Expansion Selection and move them on to another team?
It’s not likely at all, although we were very pleased in terms of the number of restricted free agents that were on the list. That means if we select them then they would become unrestricted, which would put us in a position that we would have flexibility in our roster. We could conceivably have taken one of those big players and brought back two or three players. But the key was that you want to bring back players that you like that could be around in the future.

Will any of the big money players out there be among your selections?
I would say no – not at this point.

Have you spoken with the Orlando Magic today about what direction they are looking at with the number one pick?
We’ve talked to them, but we’ve talked to them about some different scenarios. We have not spoken to them about the number one pick. The last time we spoke to them about that pick was when we were all in Chicago. We have been talking to them about some different scenarios.

Would you attempt to get up to number one if you favored one guy or the other?
We would certainly consider that. When we get off the conference call, our coaches, scouts and staff are in the other room and we’ll go in and kind of kick things around and see if we can get a consensus.

With all the young players in the draft, do you feel that the public is asked to invest something in kids they don’t even know?
I think with the coverage now through the different media – the USA Today, ESPN, the local newspapers – they are the ones who are allowing the fans to become familiar with young players. I thought in the past that was the one area that was not really covered. But now since the young players have started to come out, I think the coverage has been terrific. I mean you get front-page stories on high school players. I’m really pleased with what I see here in Charlotte in terms of the high school coverage.

Is there a theory as to how many players you want to bring in for a workout on any given day and what do you do with the kids when they come in?
We don’t have any secrets in terms of what we do. It’s all been done before in basketball. There isn’t really anything unique in terms of what Charlotte does. What we do is that we really put them through two to three hour auditions. That’s basically what it is and we just want to see if they will capitulate.

Are you looking physically, mentally or both?
I think it’s really mentally. We try to find out what innate qualities that they have. Physically sometimes you just don’t have it and I understand it. But it’s how you try to reach down and get through it. Whether you get it done or not, it’s do you make the attempt.

Can you characterize the types of players you are looking for in the Expansion Selection?
We’re looking for young players who need an opportunity to play, to get minutes. They’ve got skills, athleticism and talent and we just feel they need the opportunity. That’s how you get better. You don’t get better through osmosis. You have to get on the court and you have to participate. What we like about it also is that a lot of these young men will come into the situation and they will be hungry simply because a lot of them are in the last year of their contract also.

Will you try to acquire another pick or two in Thursday’s draft?
We are trying. We are out there in the market. In terms of the expansion list and the unrestricteds, we think we’ll have an opportunity to sign some players we like. We think there are some players on the free agency market and we think there are some players on the expansion list who are as good as what you can get in the second round.

How does Predrag Drobnjak fit into your plans?
I think when we start talking about future plans, it’s up to him. He’ll get an opportunity to come in and play. He’s got a big body and he can shoot the basketball. We envision him as a situation where you can run picks and pops and he can shoot the basketball. We do understand the things that he can do and we’ll be pulling for him to succeed.

Have you had trade talks with the Pacers and do any of their available players interest you?
We had some very pleasant conversations with them in Chicago. I think very definite that there will be a player on that list unless we change emotionally tomorrow morning that we will be selecting (from the Pacers). The league will not allow us to divulge (who that is).

Will you compare and contrast Okafor and Howard?
I think (Okafor) is probably ready because of his experience at the collegiate level and some of the battles that he has been in -- winning the NCAA Championship and the one-game sudden death. I think he is probably a little more ready right now to step in and impact a basketball team. The one thing I like about him is the defensive presence – that he can control the game from the defensive side. (Howard) we saw play seven or eight times. He’s athletic and there is a lot of upside to the things that he can do. He can run the court, I think his touch is good and he’s got a great basketball body – actually both of those young men do. I think there’s a mental toughness in both of them.

What position do you think each one will end up playing?
I think you can get away with them at the four and at the five, in some situations in terms of match-ups. I always felt that they have to match up with you also.

Would you consider taking a player off either Orlando or Houston to hold up a potential trade and make either of those teams work through you to get a deal done?
We have been in conversation with the Magic. We’re good listeners and good facilitators. We have to make a decision not to do anything that is vindictive, but just to try to do something that we can derive some benefit from. The conversations that we’ve had with Orlando have been very cordial conversations -- not necessarily to hold up anything, but to see how we can both benefit each other.

Would not working out Okafor or Howard keep you from not taking one of them?
No. We are in the process of getting those players in. Even on the Connecticut situation, I spent about five or six days on campus with them. We are really familiar with Dwight. We saw him play eight or nine times and have been in the environment that he has been in. We are in the process of talking to their people and they promised that if we got ourselves in a position that they would come in. We’re there (now).

Are you trying to win as many games as you can at any cost or are you trying to build a foundation for years to come?
Never at any cost. I think what we have to do is to lay foundation to try to sustain success. I think what we have to do is get us a core group of players and try to build around that core. We’ve got to get players who we want to build this thing from a defensive standpoint and we want guys who are going to be unselfish.

Do you anticipate taking anyone off the Mavericks roster?
At this point in time, I don’t think that’s a possibility. We have had some inquiries from teams in terms of us being a conduit, but none of that has come to fruition. There were some inquiries about Antoine Walker, but it’s a very difficult situation.

If you do take a player from another team are you also looking to take expiring contracts of a veteran player?
What we would like to do with veteran players, we would like to bring two to three veteran players in as mentors – those who understand that it’s the young guys show, they can accept the role, but they would give us some respect around the league with officiating and different types of situations.

Is there anything happening with the Knicks?
I have had conversations with Isiah (Thomas), we just can’t get to a point where we can work it out. What we like, Isiah likes and that’s basically where it is and we haven’t been able to get to point to where we can come to some kind of mutual agreement.

Will talks continue?
Definitely. We will continue to talk and continue to listen.

Do you anticipate taking someone from the Wizards?
We have not made that decision. We’ll make a decision (Tuesday) morning around 8:00 or 9:00. We have to have the list in by 12:00. We’ll make that decision early tomorrow morning.

Do you have interest in taking players from the Atlantic Coast Conference?
The only interest we have is players who can help us eventually win basketball games.

Do you anticipate taking any Magic players?
They have a pretty intriguing list. Once we get off this conference call, we are going to finalize our list, sleep on it tonight and find out whether it’s emotional or the thing that we really want to do.

How do you feel about Okafor’s back?
Obviously before we made the move to get up to two, that was a priority and (our doctor) felt pretty comfortable.