Jason Kidd and Jermaine O'Neal. The headliners.

Karl Malone, Alonzo Mourning, P.J. Brown, Juwan Howard, Gary Payton. The veteran difference makers.

No surprises. But...

	Rasho Nesterovic, right, would be a perfect replacement for David Robinson, left.

Andre Miller and Gilbert Arenas? The real battle.

The Utah Jazz? Potentially bigger power brokers than most realize.

The Jazz and Malone? The real summer intrigue.

Rasho Nesterovic? A veteran big man teams are talking about.

In a free-agent bonanza bloated with marquee names, even the subplots run deep. Charting the decisions that will sway an entire Western Conference or stagger a single franchise -- the possibility of Kidd leaving the Nets without compensation -- comes with the reality that the roles of The Overlooked are compelling.

Four out of five dentists wouldn't recognize Nesterovic if he was next to them in an elevator but teams ranging from "building" to "already there" have him under consideration. Nesterovic is an unrestricted free agent and a symbol. Among other things, he's the epitome of making a big-picture decision and looking like a genius.

He decided last summer against signing an offer sheet with someone else or doing a long-term deal with the Timberwolves and built his resume for another season. Now, come the summer of '03, he will be rewarded with a much bigger payday.

Beyond that, though, he is the poster boy for the "Best of the Rest."

He isn't dominating, but he has developed into such a dependable center that everyone from the Nuggets (the building) to the Spurs (the already there) have him on their list. The Timberwolves will try to keep him. The Knicks, apparently confusing him for a swingman or a 6-foot-8 power forward, made an immediate move. Nesterovic averaged 11.2 points and 6.5 rebounds last season.

Every pitch sends the same signal. In an era of financial concern, when some of the biggest names will be taking massive paycuts, there is something to be said for the solid deal. Nesterovic won't come cheap, but also won't come with the enigmatic standing of another unrestricted center, Michael Olowokandi. Nesterovic won't carry a team but, several general managers are convinced, won't burden one either with an impractical contract.

Just one example. Eleven points and six rebounds and his phone is ringing.

It's even possible to have an entire team overlooked. The Jazz may be major players this summer. It was never supposed to be a secret. Things just sort of worked out that way. Everyone talks about the money the Spurs and the Nuggets have and the spending power the Clippers could have (it's a non-starter; they only get the flexibility by cutting loose or renouncing a dozen or so of their free agents and that won't happen), but Utah is likewise poised for a major move.

This is where it gets really good. The Jazz, like the Clippers (and we hope for forgiveness in the great Salt Lake City for the comparison), can get there depending on the status of its other free agents. OK, OK. Free agent. Singular. Not Mailmen. Mailman.

Malone could make the decision for them and sign with the Lakers (his first choice heading into the offseason), the Mavericks or Kings (the next level), the Spurs (down a notch because they won the title and he doesn't want to be perceived as riding coattails if another championship comes) or the Hornets (a sentimental choice for a kid from Louisiana)

If not, timing becomes everything. Utah says it still wants him and Malone, likewise, still has a strong attachment to the city and the franchise, no matter the level of bickering with owner Larry Miller. But if he has not made a decision and the Jazz are on the verge of a big signing, it could create the emotional predicament of renouncing him.

It would reaffirm Malone's thinking that he really isn't wanted there, and it would be a tough move in reality or with perceptions. That's the sentimental side. The practical side, because of a salary-cap technicality, is that Utah needs his future there resolved, one way or another, because his 2002-03 salary combined with his status as a free agent eats up all their available cap space. Management may not be able to wait for his decision, although the Mailman has at least said he will keep the Jazz informed of his mindset so that the organization will also be able to plan its next steps.

The strides will include the pursuit of a point guard to replace John Stockton. There's only one on the roster who isn't a free agent, Raul Lopez, a talent but also an uncertainty because of two major knee operations. So they look at Gilbert Arenas and Andre Miller in the overlooked showdown, a much closer call than the wide perception that teams are falling at Arenas' feet. That's not just the opinion in Utah. That's the point of view in a lot of places around the league.

	Andre Miller has had only one bad season: 2002-03 with the Clippers.

It's a major decision, and it's a contrast. Arenas is the hot ticket. He just averaged 18.3 points, 6.3 assists and 4.7 rebounds, was named Most Improved Player and showed star quality. But he's only had the one good season. Before that, Arenas had a good finish to his rookie campaign, which came after the same league let him go all the way to the second round of the draft. He had moments of pouting in Golden State and, while his talent is acknowledged, executives are divided whether he showed himself in 2002-03 to be a long-term All-Star or was just putting up big numbers on a lottery team.

Miller is the one coming off a Clippers season. He just gave away millions with a 2002-03 filled with poor shooting and bad decisions. But he's had the one bad season. Before that, it was three years of impressing with his sound play, aggressive style and continued upswing in Cleveland, where he lead the league in assists in 2001-02 on a club that finished 16th in scoring.

San Antonio will pursue Kidd but no other starting point guard. They could look at one for a reserve role, depending on whether Speedy Claxton leaves. That leaves Denver and Utah -- and maybe Miami, if it clears cap space -- as teams with a need at the position and money to bid. Miller has too often been silver-plattered to the Jazz (because he played at the University of Utah -- flimsy reasoning) and Arenas to the Nuggets, under the general impression that they are the only ones who can afford him. Everyone is wrong.

Utah has been considering Arenas all along and Denver is attracted to Miller as well as Arenas. It's the true distributor vs. the scoring point, the proven-over-time vs. the potential one-hit wonder. Arenas' agent signaled Denver when he said his client wouldn't sign a contract starting at less than $7 million, pricing out Golden State because the Warriors can't go beyond $4.8 million to match their own restricted free agent. However, it likely was also an undecipherable message. There's a difference between having the money and being fiscally irresponsible with other positions to address. It's not the automatic deal most assume, so the Nuggets won't go that deep, giving Miller the added bonus of potentially being more cost efficient.

Miller is, likewise, a restricted free agent but, unlike the Warriors with Arenas, the Clippers can match any offer. Whether they will is the source of front-office debate. Elton Brand probably won't get an offer sheet because the Clippers will match, and chances are good he wouldn't accept one anyway when the alternative is to stay in L.A. another season and become an unrestricted free agent in 2004, but Miller was such a disappointment that the Clips don't want to tie themselves to a six-year contract.

The respective decisions -- by the Nuggets, Jazz and Clippers -- will be headliners in their own right, just not like Kidd and O'Neal. They will be difference makers, just without the battery of spotlights of the All-Star veterans. They'll be overlooked only in comparison.

Scott Howard-Cooper, who covers the NBA for the Sacramento Bee, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.