Watson, Eight Others in Deal

Former UCLA guard Earl Watson returned to the Seattle SuperSonics and forward Ruben Patterson was dealt from the Portland Trail Blazers to the Denver Nuggets on Thursday as part of a four-team, nine-player deal just before the trade deadline.

The Sacramento Kings also were involved in the deal.

Seattle sent forward Reggie Evans, 26, to Denver and center Vitaly Potapenko, 30, to Portland and received Watson, forward Bryon Russell, 35, and a second-round pick from the Nuggets. Portland sent Patterson and Charles Smith, 30, to the Nuggets and acquired Voshon Lenard, 32, and forward Brian Skinner, 29, from Sacramento.

Portland then sent Potapenko to the Kings along with Sergei Monia, 22.

The deal featured role players looking for new opportunities. Seattle received the backup point guard it sought, Denver gained help for its frontcourt and Portland cleared out salary.

“In the end, I think it’s a deal that really helps everybody and satisfies what everyone wanted to do,” Nugget General Manager Kiki Vandeweghe said.

Watson, 26, was considered a trade possibility for months and Seattle needed a backup point guard to Luke Ridnour. But teams were hesitant to take on the five-year, $29-million deal he signed with Denver last summer.

In a rotation with Andre Miller and Earl Boykins this season, Watson has played in 46 games and averaged 7.5 points and 3.5 assists. He returns to the team that drafted him in the second round in 2001.

Patterson, 30, was averaging 11.4 points in 45 games for Portland this season but had feuded with new Coach Nate McMillan.

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Billionaire Paul Allen’s spokesman said that the Trail Blazers’ future is in doubt after Allen’s investment managers estimated the franchise stands to lose more than $100 million over the next three years.

Lance Conn, who heads Vulcan Capital Management, Allen’s privately held investment firm, told the Associated Press that “all options are on the table” because “the economic model is broken.” Allen has already sold off his interest in the Rose Garden Arena, the home of the Trail Blazers, after the company that ran it declared bankruptcy.

Conn said Allen has decided it is time to cut his losses with the team -- or find a new way to finance it. Conn also said the arena lease “is recognized as one of the worst in the NBA.”

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NBA Commissioner David Stern asked Washington state lawmakers for tax money to renovate the SuperSonics’ KeyArena, saying there could be consequences otherwise.

Stern spoke at a legislative hearing in Olympia, Wash., flanked by SuperSonic owner Howard Schultz and team president Wally Walker. Schultz has threatened to move or sell the team if state lawmakers don’t approve a sales-tax package to pay for a new or renovated arena.

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Sidelined most of the season by a strained calf, guard Derek Anderson, 31, was acquired by the Miami Heat from the Houston Rockets for guard Gerald Fitch, 23.

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The Cleveland Cavaliers acquired guard Ronald Murray, 26, from Seattle for guard Mike Wilks, 26.

Cleveland also sent its second-round pick in this year’s draft to the Philadelphia 76ers for forward Lee Nailon and a second-round pick this season.

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The New Orleans Hornets acquired forwards Marc Jackson, 30, and Linton Johnson III, 25, from the New Jersey Nets for forward Bostjan Nachbar, 25.

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Unable to trade Tim Thomas, 28, before the deadline, the Chicago Bulls are discussing a buyout of his $14-million contract.

Thomas, banished from the team after complaining about his limited role, hopes to join a playoff team. Players waived after March 1 are not eligible for the postseason.

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Portland guard Sebastian Telfair was suspended for two games by the NBA for violating the league’s firearms policy by possessing a loaded gun before a flight in Boston this month.

No charges were filed and Telfair was fined an undisclosed amount by the team.