SALT LAKE CITY — Jazz ownership is believed to have signed off Monday night on a trade that would bring Minnesota Timberwolves big man Al Jefferson to Utah.
Tweeted Jazz CEO Greg Miller shortly before 9 p.m. Monday: "I just approved a Jazz roster move that I'm very excited about. Planning to share details tomorrow."
Asked if an under-discussion trade for Jefferson was complete, Jazz general manager Kevin O'Connor said, "I just can't comment."
O'Connor did say that the Jazz would take their full seven days before to deciding whether to match the offer sheet starting shooting guard Wesley Matthews signed with Portland last Saturday, seemingly eliminating that as the "roster move" referenced by family ownership rep Miller.
Jefferson — a former Boston Celtic, and integral to the 2007 trade that sent Kevin Garnett from Minnesota to Boston — requested that the Timberwolves deal him.
With three NBA seasons in Boston and three in Minnesota, he's a career 15.7 points-per-game scorer. In three of those six seasons, he's also averaged 11.0 rebounds per game.
Minnesota had been talking about Jefferson over the weekend with Dallas, but Utah emerged Monday as a serious suitor.
The Jazz and 'Wolves apparently were haggling Monday night over details on draft-pick details involved in the pending deal.
It's not known precisely what Utah would send to Minnesota in return, but a protected future first-round draft choice that the Jazz acquired in a February swap with Memphis could be part of the package.
The Timberwolves, it's thought, do not want to take any player salary back in a deal for a Jefferson.
The Jazz presumably would absorb Jefferson's hefty salary with the $13-plus million traded player exception it acquired by completing a sign-and-trade with Chicago when two-time NBA All-Star Carlos Boozer recently signed with the Bulls.
That allows them to get around the fact they'd be over the NBA team payroll salary cap of $58.044 million next season.
Jefferson is scheduled to make $42 million over the next three seasons — $13 million next season, $14 million in 2011-12 and $15 million in 2012-13.
Though not at all known for his defensive skills, much a la Boozer, the 6-foot-10 Jefferson is a 265-pound load down low who can contribute out of either the power forward or center positions.
It would remain to be seen which two would start among a potential Jazz front-line trio of Jefferson, power forward Paul Millsap and center Mehmet Okur.
Jefferson, a 25-year-old Mississippi native, averaged 17.1 points and 9.3 rebounds last season — numbers only slightly off the 19.5 and 11.2 that two-time NBA All-Star Boozer put up last season.
But Jefferson missed the final 32 games of the previous season, which was cut short by a complete ACL tear in his right knee that prompted reconstructive surgery.
The knee hampered him a bit last season, but he did return to play 76 games in 2009-10.
Two of the games he missed were due to a two-game suspension stemming from a late-February drunk-driving incident.
Before any deal could be formalized, it would have to be approved by the NBA — talks were going on too late for that to happen Monday night — and Jefferson presumably would have to pass a physical exam.
ESPN.com reported Monday night that the Jazz had become "fresh competition" after talks between Minnesota and Dallas hit a snag.
Minnesota was going to take Erick Dampier's non-guaranteed $13 million contract from Dallas, but it wanted a package of draft picks instead of the $15.8 million in salary that the Mavs wanted to include in the form of ex-Jazz guard DeShawn Stevenson and guard Matt Carroll.
ESPN.com reported that the Jazz had "quickly moved into the lead to acquire" Jefferson, Yahoo.com's wording was that the Jazz were "on the brink" of obtaining him and the Minneapolis Star Tribune wrote that the 'Wolves "late Monday were believed to be close to a trade with Utah."
After missing out earlier on Udonis Haslem, who opted to return to Miami for a lower salary than Dallas and Denver reportedly were offering, the Jazz had been considering several lower-priced possibilities, including Al Harrington (last with New York), Louis Amundson (Phoenix), Anthony Tolliver (Golden State) and Josh Powell (the Los Angeles Lakers).
SI.com reported Harrington was "looking at" Utah, New Jersey and the Los Angeles Clippers; Fanhouse.com report Tolliver was "looking at" Utah, Atlanta or a possible return to Golden State.
Even if the Jefferson deal does fall into place, the Jazz could still consider Amundson, Tolliver or Powell — but that probably would mean opting against re-signing backup center and restricted free agent Kyrylo Fesenko.
e-mail: tbuckley@desnews.com