As bad as things have been for the Mavericks, their attention has not yet turned to next season.

That's why one recent online report that Antawn Jamison would relocate this summer to his hometown Charlotte Bobcats caught the Mavericks by surprise. That it has virtually no chance of happening made it surprising, too.

The most surprised person might have been Bobcats general manager and coach Bernie Bickerstaff. He cannot talk about players until May 5, but Bickerstaff outlined his strategy for building the Bobcats' roster, and it certainly didn't sound as if the Mavericks' sixth man is in Charlotte's future.

The gossip was that the Bobcats would part with their first draft pick, No. 4 overall, and acquire Jamison, who has four more seasons on his contract at a total salary of more than $57 million.

"Our first pick is very valuable to us," Bickerstaff said. "It would have to be something monumental for us to consider" moving it.

Bickerstaff also said the team is not interested in a long-term, max- imum salary such as Jamison's.

"The veterans that we want are guys with one or two years left [on their contracts] who are good in the locker room and can help our young kids," Bickerstaff said. "Our kids are going to be the show."

Though Jamison, 27, was born and raised in Charlotte and remains heavily involved in the community, his immediate future figures to be in Dallas. "I knew that wasn't going to happen," he said. "That's too much salary [$12.584 million next year] for them."