Aaron Gray is happy to have been traded to the Hornets, saying that the Bulls never gave him a chance to produce.

Chicago dealt Gray to New Orleans in exchange for Devin Brown.

"Definitely better," the center said. "I definitely feel like I'm gonna have an opportunity. I'm gonna have to work and earn those minutes, but I feel like I'm fighting for something here.

"Over there [with the Bulls], there was just no opportunity no matter what. They showed me that in the Houston game."

Gray began the season on the inactive list after suffering a stress fracture in his lower left leg.

"I'm still battling with my conditioning and getting back to 100 percent," he said. "But in the last few weeks I've actually felt great and, hopefully, now it'll benefit the Hornets and not the Bulls."

The Los Angeles Clippers today acquired guard Bobby Brown from the New Orleans Hornets in exchange for a 2014 conditional second round draft pick and cash considerations. In a related move, the Clippers released guard JamesOn Curry from his 10-day contract.

Brown, 25, has appeared in 25 games for the Hornets this season and is averaging 6.6 points and 2.1 assists in 14.9 minutes per game.

The Chicago Bulls announced today that the team has acquired guard Devin Brown from the New Orleans Hornets for center Aaron Gray.

?We?re excited to add Devin Brown to our team,? said Chicago Bulls General Manager Gar Forman.  ?His toughness, defensive versatility, and shooting will be excellent additions to our perimeter rotation.?

Brown (6-5, 210) has appeared in 39 games (37 starts) for the Hornets this year, and averaged 9.7 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 1.5 apg in 24.8 mpg.  On the season, he has shot .394 from the field, .367 from behind the arc and .802 from the line.

The Hornets have traded guard Devin Brown to the Bulls in exchange for center Aaron Gray, according to front office sources.

The trade is expected to become official later on Monday.

New Orleans nearly traded Brown to Minnesota in December, but the deal could not satisfy salary-cap requirements unless Brown agreed to waive a portion of the trade kicker in his contract.

The deal will give the Hornets a small amount of luxury-tax savings, but it also gives them an extra big man off the bench in Gray.

The Hornets will have to make at least one more trade before the Feb. 18 trading deadline to get under the league's $69.9 million luxury-tax threshold.

Coach/General Manager Jeff Bower said the Hornets have had various discussions and are actively monitoring teams.  The trade deadline is approaching and New Orleans is approximately $500,000 above the luxury tax threshold,

"If there's something that presents itself that will help us and give us some flexibility, then we will look at something," Bower said before Monday's game. "Like every team, we will continue that up until the trade deadline."

The Hornets could be looking to move Sean Marks, Devin Brown or Ike Diogu because all three have expiring contracts, and several teams are interested in those contracts to cut their payrolls.

Bower reiterated he is not looking to trade Chris Paul, David West or Emeka Okafor.

Jeff Bower and the Hornets selected Hilton Armstrong and Cedric Simmons in the 2006 NBA Draft, while passing on players such as Rajon Rondo and Paul Millsap.

Both players were disappointments and are no longer with the club.

"In my first year with San Antonio, I was there early to work out, " said Devin Brown, who played for the Hornets in 2006-07 when Armstrong and Simmons were rookies. "But all the time that I've been here, I didn't see them (Armstrong or Simmons) do that. So basically, they had no development of post moves, and they kind of got thrown into the fire.

"You cannot do that at this level. You have to spend time and work on things because guys are going to take certain moves away, and you must have counter moves. They did a little bit, but not what they should have been doing."

"I would have been much more satisfied had (they) developed into more effective contributors," Bower said. "For a young player to be successful, his rate of improvement has to be steady and his opportunity to perform has got to be a continual sign of growth."

Jeff Bower, general manager/head coach of the Hornets, did not deny that teams have called expressing interest in trading for Chris Paul or David West. One reported deal this week had the San Antonio Spurs willing to exchange point guard Tony Parker for Paul.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have expressed interest in West since November.

Since last season, the Dallas Mavericks have expressed interest in obtaining Paul and taking on the remainder of Peja Stojakovic's hefty contract to make the deal more attractive for the Hornets.

But Bower said the Hornets have no intentions of trading away any members of their core to get under the luxury-tax threshold.

"The foundation of our plan has always been to maintain our core group of players and to look at ways that wouldn't affect our overall basketball team on the court," Bower said.

The Hornets are very close to being save from the luxury tax.

Hornets owner George Shinn will undergo surgery to remove his prostate on Wednesday.

Shinn, 68, was diagnosed with cancer in November.

He has been the owner of the Hornets since he received an expansion franchise in Charlotte, N.C., in 1988.

The Kings have acquired center Hilton Armstrong from the Hornets.  

The Hornets, who are attempting to clear salary from their payroll, will also send cash to Sacramento.

For New Orleans, the trade sheds the $2.8 million salary of Armstrong and leaves the team a bit more than $500,000 over this season's luxury-tax threshold.

The Kings will send the Hornets a future, conditional second-round pick.

The Heat thumped the Hawks on Monday night to send Atlanta to their fourth straight loss.

- Miami 92, Atlanta 75

Team FIC Differential: Heat +39.7, Hawks -39.7

The Miami Heat (17-15) jumped out to an early lead and cruised to a victory against the Atlanta Hawks (21-11) on Monday night. Dwyane Wade had 28 points and eight rebounds, Michael Beasley posted 22 points and eight boards and Udonis Haslem added 12 points and eight rebounds off the bench. Miami outrebounded Atlanta by 21 and limited them to 35% shooting. Jamal Crawford scored a team-high 23 points, Joe Johnson tallied 11 points and six rebounds and Josh Smith contributed eight points, six boards and five assists in the loss.

Game FIC Scores

Dwyane Wade, Miami ? 19.8

Michael Beasley, Miami ? 12.2

Jamal Crawford, Atlanta ? 11.1

Udonis Haslem, Miami ? 10.5

- Oklahoma City 98, Chicago 85

Team FIC Differential: Thunder +16.8, Bulls -16.8

The Oklahoma City Thunder (19-15) outscored the Chicago Bulls (14-18) by 18 points in the third quarter at the United Center. Russell Westbrook starred with 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists, Kevin Durant tallied 25 points and eight boards and James Harden put up 13 points and four dimes off the bench. Oklahoma City shot 48% from the field and held Chicago to just 35% as they overcome 20 turnovers. Derrick Rose had 19 points and seven assists, Joakim Noah posted 14 points and 14 rebounds and Luol Deng chipped in 15 points and 10 boards.

Game FIC Scores

Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City ? 18.1

Kirk Hinrich, Chicago ? 15.5

Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City ? 14.4

Joakim Noah, Chicago ? 14.3

- New Orleans 91, Utah 87

Team FIC Differential: Hornets +12.4, Jazz -12.4

The New Orleans Hornets (16-16) used a strong third period to knock off the Utah Jazz (18-16) on Monday evening. Devin Brown scored 30 points on 11-for-20 shooting, David West posted 20 points and nine rebounds and Chris Paul stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points, nine assists, six boards and three steals. New Orleans outrebounded Utah by five and held the Jazz to just 37% shooting. Carlos Boozer had 18 points and 14 rebounds, Deron Williams tallied 17 points and 11 assists and Paul Millsap totaled six points and 13 boards off the bench.

Game FIC Scores

Deron Williams, Utah ? 18.9

David West, New Orleans ? 18.5

Devin Brown, New Orleans ? 13.9

Andrei Kirilenko, Utah ? 13.4

- L.A. Clippers 105, Portland 95

Team FIC Differential: Clippers +16.6, Blazers -16.6

The Los Angeles Clippers (15-18) pulled away from the Portland Trail Blazers (22-14) in the second half to record a win at the STAPLES Center. Chris Kaman led with 20 points and eight rebounds, Baron Davis tallied 15 points and nine assists and Marcus Camby excelled with nine points, 15 boards, six dimes, three blocks and three steals. Los Angeles shot 57%, which helped them overcome 20 turnovers. Martell Webster had 25 points and six rebounds, Andre Miller posted 22 points and 16 assists and Juwan Howard scored 16 points on 8-for-11 shooting.

Game FIC Scores

Marcus Camby, Los Angeles ? 24.3

Andre Miller, Portland ? 23.6

Martell Webster, Portland ? 17.4

Chris Kaman, Los Angeles ? 16.8

? RealGM calculates the Floor Impact Counter using the following formula: (Points + .75 Defensive Rebounds + Offensive Rebounds + Steals + Assists + Blocks - .75 Field Goal Attempts - .375 Free Throw Attempts - Turnovers - .5 Personal Fouls)

( )'s indicate a negative FIC score.

It is also used to rank players and to determine their ?Reina Value.? Click here to view the player rankings with the Reina Value for the current season