Boston sends Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Marcus Banks and Justin Reed to Minnesota in exchange for Wally Szczerbiak, Michael Olowokandi and Dwayne Jones.

09:51 AM EST on Friday, January 27, 2006

BY SHALISE MANZA YOUNG
Journal Sports Writer

They're shaking things up.

Last night, the Boston Celtics and Minnesota Timberwolves swung a seven-player trade that sent guards Ricky Davis and Marcus Banks, forward Justin Reed, forward/center Mark Blount and two conditional second-round draft picks to the T'Wolves in exchange for forward Wally Szczerbiak, centers Michael Olowokandi and Dwayne Jones and a future first-round draft pick.

Boston has been trying to move Blount for weeks. The 7-footer has always underachieved when it comes to rebounding, and complained this season about the number of touches he was getting on the offensive end.

As recently as last week, Boston's trade talk with Minnesota focused on just two players: Blount and Olowokandi, and it appeared a swap was imminent.

"We are ecstatic to acquire a player of Wally Szczerbiak's quality to complement Paul Pierce and our young talent base," said Boston executive director of basketball operations Danny Ainge, who worked with former teammate and Timberwolves general manager Kevin McHale to make the deal. "In Wally, we are receiving an All-Star player who is playoff-tested and who has been a winner at all levels."

The surprise of the trade is Davis. Before he arrived in Boston -- via a midseason 2003 trade with Cleveland -- the high-flying guard had a reputation as a bad teammate and was known for a stunt he pulled in March 2003 in which he deliberately missed a shot in order to pull down the rebound and get his first triple-double.

But despite his defensive deficiencies, Davis was firmly entrenched in head coach Doc Rivers' game plans. He played nearly 42 minutes per game, fifth-most in the league, and was second on the team in scoring (19.7 points) and tops in assists (5.3).

He accepted a role as sixth man last season for Boston, and Rivers believed the only reason he didn't win the NBA's Sixth Man Award (Chicago's Ben Gordon did) was because of his reputation.

Blount is averaging a career-high 12.4 points but just 4.2 rebounds per game this season.

Banks, the third-year point guard who has never lived up to Ainge's expectations, had initially been shopped to some West Coast teams, with Ainge seeking a second-round pick in return.

Banks sat out the first 21 games this season with a stress fracture in his left tibia and started off well when he returned, hitting double-digits in scoring in five of his first eight games. In recent weeks, however, his questionable decision-making and lack of production had earned him a spot on the bench. He was in uniform but did not play in three of Boston's last six games, including Wednesday's loss to Washington.

Reed, a second-year forward, just Wednesday was placed on the inactive list so Rivers could activate rookie Ryan Gomes.

Szczerbiak, whose relationship with Minnesota superstar Kevin Garnett has been tenuous, is averaging a career-high 20.1 points this season. The 6-foot-7 forward, a lottery pick in the 1999 draft out of Miami of Ohio, is making $10 million this season and is under contract for $36 million more over the next three seasons.

Szczerbiak, an All-Star in 2002 whose subsequent two seasons were marred by injuries, was flourishing as the No. 2 scoring option to Garnett.

Though frequently mentioned in trade talks over the past several seasons, Szczerbiak sounded surprised by the deal when reached on his cell phone late last night.

"You never know in this business," he said.

As for his relationship with Garnett, Szczerbiak said:

"K.G. and I have been teammates for seven years. I've learned a lot from him. . .Now we're moving on and breaking apart."

Olowokandi is much like Blount -- big, but lacking the instinct or desire to do the dirty work underneath. The former No. 1 pick (1998, Los Angeles Clippers) lost his starting job earlier this season and is averaging just 6 points and 5.6 rebounds a game.

But Olowokandi has one major upside -- he is in the final year of a three-year contract and will be a free agent at the end of this year. His contract is for just under $6 million this season.

Jones was an undrafted free agent whom Minnesota signed in August. He is currently with the Florida Flame of the NBDL, where he is averaging 9 points and over 11 rebounds per game.

"Through this trade, we've become a much more athletic team," McHale said in a statement. "With Ricky Davis, we've added one of the more talented shooting guards in the NBA -- both on the offensive and defensive ends of the court. Plus, with Davis and Trenton Hassell together on the court, we'll have a great defensive presence at the 2-3 positions."

McHale said it wasn't easy to trade Szczerbiak.

"It was a tough decision to trade Wally," McHale said in the statement. "He has been the ultimate professional and a very good player for us through the years. I wish him nothing but the best of luck with the rest of his NBA career."