31.   General Manager John Gabriel has decided to stockpile salary cap room for the free-agent blitz next summer.

32.   Gabriel traded Johnny Taylor and Keon Clark to free up salary cap room so the Magic could sign Isaac Austin.

33.   Getting a verbal agreement, then working to free up cap room has been common practice since the advent of NFL free agency.

34.   Harper has offers from Charlotte and Detroit and is getting interest from San Antonio, Miami and Indiana, all of whom are trying to clear cap room.

35.   Gund wonders if any other team will have the cap room to pay that.

36.   He knows cap room is scarce and he desperately wants to join a team that will give him playing time.

37.   Houston, the only other team with competitive salary cap room, traded for Scottie Pippen.

38.   If Gatling is traded for cap room, the team probably will suffer in the standings.

39.   If the Nets can not use Chris Gatling or Jayson Williams to land a center, even less cap room would be available.

40.   I told the owners that we could use the cap room in other ways and to be patient.