Maggette’s Foot Injury Is Deal-Breaker for Artest

Concerned about forward Corey Maggette’s left foot injury, the Indiana Pacers on Thursday rejected a trade proposal that would have brought All-Star forward Ron Artest to the Clippers.

Indiana ended its pursuit of Maggette, injured Dec. 5 against the Miami Heat, in part because he might require surgery to implant a screw in his foot and be sidelined the remainder of the season, NBA sources said.

Indiana, in talks for weeks with the Clippers, also rejected a proposal for power forward Chris Wilcox that would not have included Maggette.

Although eager to bolster a roster depleted by injuries, the Clippers apparently won’t receive a boost from Artest.

“I’m not going to talk about negotiations,” Coach Mike Dunleavy said after practice Thursday at the Spectrum health club in El Segundo. “We’ve talked to people, but I’m not going to mention what the negotiations were.

“We made a comment that we had an interest in Artest. It just depends on the price, and right now it’s not the right price.”

The Clippers initially rejected the Pacers’ offer of Artest for Maggette, but things changed for the Clippers because of injuries, including Maggette’s.

The team’s second-leading scorer with an average of 21.7 points, Maggette was expected to return in late December, but team medical personnel on Dec. 23 revealed he had a separation of the ligament between the bones midway in the foot. Maggette’s foot was placed in a cast, and he’s expected to be sidelined another four to six weeks if surgery is not required.

Because of questions about Maggette’s short- and long-term status, the Clippers strongly considered acquiring Artest, whose on- and off-court behavior prompted the Pacers to put him on the inactive list Dec. 12, two days after he voiced his desire to be traded.

Moreover, there is growing concern in the Clipper organization that the team might fail to earn a Western Conference playoff berth. Since a 14-5 start, the Clippers are 4-9 and have struggled on defense.

“We’re not desperate,” General Manager Elgin Baylor said. “You want to win, you hate to be losing games, but desperate? No, we’ve just got to put forth extra effort.”

Maggette was pleased to learn that he wouldn’t be traded for Artest.

“I just got the reassurance from Elgin right now that nothing’s going to happen,” Maggette said. “The biggest thing to me is that I know this is a business, so I’ve got to handle it professionally.

“I love my fans here, I love Los Angeles, I love my teammates. But whatever happens, I’m going to handle it the way you’re supposed to handle it. Putting on that uniform is a blessing, so whatever uniform I play with, it doesn’t make any difference.”