Marc Stein is reporting that the Phoenix Suns and Atlanta Hawks are on the verge of completing a sign and trade with restricted free agent, Joe Johnson.

The proposed deal, according to sources, would bring guard Boris Diaw and two lottery-protected future first-round picks to Phoenix -- along with a trade exception in the $5 million range -- after Johnson signs a contract under terms established by Atlanta: $70 million over five years with an estimated balloon payment of $20 million up front.

Johnson has agreed to sign a five-year/seventy million dollar contract with the Hawks.

After maintaining for weeks that it would match any offer sheet Johnson signs, Phoenix chose a new course this weekend, ultimately deciding it was better for team chemistry to pursue a sign-and-trade with Atlanta instead of investing huge sums in a player who wants to leave.

A report on Friday indicated that Joe Johnson told the Suns that he doesn't want them to match the offer sheet he signs with the Hawks.

But Johnson also said Friday to Toronto's "The Fan" radio station when asked whether Phoenix was the best scenario for him.

"Probably so, more than likely so," Johnson said before a long, deep breath. "It's going to be tough. It's going to be real tough. Hopefully, everything will work out like we want it."

His posturing may have more to do with ensuring that a five-year offer that may be worth almost $72 million (with $18 million up front) is still on the table Tuesday.

Those close to him said he was upset when Phoenix would not go up $5 million to meet his request for $50 million for six years last summer, when the Suns gave Quentin Richardson a six-year, $43.5 million deal.

He was further unsettled this month when Phoenix offered $60 million for six years and asked him to choose between it and the Atlanta offer at one point. That prompted his request to Sarver, who intends to match the Hawks' offer. He has a week to do so once Johnson signs Atlanta's offer.

"It's a lot of things," Johnson told ESPN.com when asked why he would want to leave Phoenix. "It's the way things were handled last summer, how things have been handled this summer. There's been some things going on that aren't great."

Steven Hunter, who showed much promise in his one year in Phoenix, is a free agent who is expected to make a decision this weekend about where he will play next year. He has narrowed his choices down to four teams - Dallas, New Jersey, Atlanta and Phoenix.

Hunter hopes to stay in Phoenix but could not get more than a one-year commitment for the minimum exception ($1.7 million) plus an option year from the team.

The 7-foot center is looking for a four or five-year deal and could end up with the Mavericks.

Joe Johnson told ESPN.com Friday that he wants Phoenix to let him go to Atlanta.

ESPN.com reported that Johnson told Suns managing owner Robert Sarver this week that he would rather Phoenix not match the Hawks' five-year, $70 million offer sheet. He can sign the offer Tuesday, leaving the Suns a week to match and retain him.

Johnson told ESPN.com that the Suns still plan to match the offer, although a sign and trade could develop and would not have to match in salaries because Atlanta has cap room.

Johnson spoke out while in Toronto for Steve Nash's charity game.

"It's a lot of things," Johnson told ESPN.com. "How things were handled last summer (Sarver declined to give him $50 million for six years), how things have been handled this summer (Phoenix offered $60 million for six years). There's been some things going on that aren't great."

Johnson has not returned calls and canceled an early July meeting. His distaste for Phoenix is well known, according to other teams' officials. Talks turned nastier last week.

Reports are beginning to come in that Joe Johnson intends to sign an offer sheet from the Atlanta Hawks.

Johnson is a restricted free agent and the Suns will have seven days to match.

The Suns have made a series of moves this offseason which indicate that they intend to match any deal Johnson receives.

A veteran of 4 years in the NBA, Predrag Drobnjak decided to continue his career in Spain, agreeing to a 3 year deal with Tau Ceramica, which recently also signed Raptors' 2005 2nd round pick, Roko Leni Ukic.

What makes this deal unusual is the almost unprecedented ?5 million, or the equivalent of roughly $6 million, Drobnjak will receive for the duration of his contract.

Drobnjak played 4 seasons in the NBA with Seattle, Los Angeles Clippers, and Atlanta, with career averages of 8ppg and 3.5rpg. He was also the first player ever acquired by the Charlotte Bobcats, despite never playing a game for them.

He was believed to have received interest from Seattle and Chicago before agreeing to play in Spain.

The NY Daily News is reporting that one week after Larry Brown and the Pistons parted ways, Brown's former club offered Darko Milicic to the Atlanta Hawks for Al Harrington.

Brown's reluctance to play the unproven second-year forward caused a rift between the coach and Detroit president Joe Dumars. Now it appears the Pistons are willing to trade the second overall pick of the 2003 draft.

The Philadelphia 76ers agreed to a six-year contract late Saturday with restricted free agent center Samuel Dalembert, his agent Marc Cornstein told SI.com. Salary figures were not immediately available.

Dalembert had been scheduled to interview Monday with the Atlanta Hawks, who possessed enough cap space to make him a maximum offer.

With this agreement, the 76ers have made good on their promise to re-sign free agents Dalembert, Willie Green and Kyle Korver. They also now have one of the highest payrolls in the NBA.

Late 2nd round Atlanta Hawk draftee Cenk Akyol is putting on an absolute show for the NBA scouts and executives in attendance (amongst others) in the European Junior Championships in Belgrade, while the 12th pick of the Los Angeles Clippers, Yaroslav Korolev, is having trouble living up to the expectations of being a lottery pick.

Akyol's highlights include a 29 point opening game against Croatia, a 17 point exhibition in the first half against France and an impressive closing run against Latvia, where he single-handedly changed the destiny of a game that was looking lost for the Turkish national team. He's lead his team to Semi-finals of the tournament so far where they will match up with Spain.

On the other hand, Yaroslav Korolev's team has surprisingly missed the cut to move on after losing two of three games in the quarter-final round. According to Luis Fernandez from DraftExpress, Korolev doesn't look focused enough, committing mistakes and silly fouls, and sometimes looking frustrated and out of the rhythm of the games. His father?s presence as the Russian head coach sure isn't helping his case, as Yaroslav looks to be under too much pressure playing the game.

Whereas the medical news Eddy Curry has received lately has been positive, there has been no encouraging news for the Bulls center when it comes to a long-term contract.

Curry probably will have to settle for a short-term deal that includes clauses to protect the Bulls--or any team that signs him as a restricted free agent--if his heart condition prohibits him from fulfilling his contract. Just a month ago, it was believed Curry could command a salary of about $67 million over six years with the Bulls.

Since then, Bulls officials have been notified Trustmark, the NBA's carrier, will exclude Curry's heart issues from insurance coverage, a team source confirmed Tuesday.

Now it's up to Curry's agent, Leon Rose, and his financial advisers to seek insurance coverage for the 22-year-old. Efforts to reach Curry and Rose were unsuccessful.

The NBA's policy allows the Bulls or Curry to find an alternative carrier, but the chances of finding a company that would assume the liability appear bleak.

"He can get insurance," said Jim Padilla, an independent insurance broker from New Lenox who has worked with athletes. "He just can't get his heart included. They're going to exclude [it] until he can prove he can play without heart issues."

Padilla said Curry probably needs to play a season without symptoms related to his irregular heartbeat before a company will drop the exclusion.