Sacramento Reacts, Gets Miller

The Sacramento Kings couldn’t sit still while the rest of the Western Conference’s elite teams got better, and the Indiana Pacers didn’t want to let All-Star center Brad Miller leave town for nothing.

So the clubs joined with the San Antonio Spurs in a three-team, five-player trade on Thursday that sent Miller, 27, to the Kings moments after he signed a seven-year, $68-million contract.

The Kings traded backup center Scot Pollard, 28, to the Pacers. They also sent promising forward Hedo Turkoglu, 24, to the Spurs, who traded forward Danny Ferry, 36, to Indiana. In addition, San Antonio got well-traveled guard Ron Mercer, 27, from the Pacers.

“We’re very excited to add an All-Star-caliber player to our team,” said Geoff Petrie, the Kings’ president of basketball operations.

The Kings also hope they got their center of the future, because veteran Vlade Divac’s contract expires next summer.

Pacer chief executive Donnie Walsh said the team also received a trade exception worth about $4 million. Walsh believes Indiana now has the room to re-sign five-time All-Star guard Reggie Miller and possibly another free agent.

Brad Miller, who went undrafted out of Purdue in 1998, averaged 13.1 points and 8.3 rebounds last season. More important, he’s a tough defensive player who won’t mind getting physical with Shaquille O’Neal, Tim Duncan and the rest of the West’s top big men.

Miller also entertained big offers from Utah and Denver.

Turkoglu, the NBA’s first Turkish-born player, averaged 6.7 points and 2.8 rebounds last season, but his playing time dwindled as Coach Rick Adelman used veteran Jim Jackson instead.

Pollard, known for his unusual hairdos, averaged 4.5 points and 4.6 rebounds after missing most of last season because of various injuries.

Ferry, whose contract was up with the Spurs, seldom played during San Antonio’s run to the NBA title.

The Pacers probably will cut him, and the 13-year veteran might retire.

Mercer, headed to his sixth NBA team since 1997, averaged 7.7 points and 2.1 rebounds in Indiana last season.

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Point guard Jason Kidd officially re-signed with the New Jersey Nets for six years and $103 million, returning to the team he has led to two consecutive NBA Finals and saying, “I have some unfinished business and that is to win a championship in this league and win it as a Net. This is the best chance for me to win a championship.”

Kidd also denied reports that he demanded that Coach Byron Scott be replaced.

“That whole thing about me coming in and demanding stuff, that’s not my personality or my agenda,” Kidd said. “That story came out and it was wrong. If there’s any question about coach and [my] relationship, it’s great and we plan to move forward.”

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The Lakers signed forward-center Jamaal Sampson, two weeks after he was waived by the Milwaukee Bucks. Utah selected the former Mater Dei and California player in the second round of the 2002 draft.... Toyota Motor Corp. reached a multiyear naming rights agreement for the Houston Rockets’ new arena, which will be called the Toyota Center. It is the first sports facility in the city to have an international, rather than Houston-based, company buy the naming rights.... Magic Johnson’s 18th annual “A Midsummer Night’s Magic”’ All-Star charity game, featuring rookie LeBron James, will be held at 4:30 p.m. Sunday at Staples Center. Tickets are on sale at Ticketmaster.