Around The Rim

When Stacey Augmon was traded from Portland to Houston in the Scottie Pippen deal, he went to a team that needed perimeter shooting at small forward. So Augmon, a defensive specialist who can't knock down the 18-footer, was waived by the Rockets, who are on the hook for his $3.6 million salary. He was then re-signed by the Blazers. According to the new collective bargaining agreement, Portland must pay him the veterans' minimum of $500,000 this season, and the league must kick in an additional $350,000. Thus Augmon will pocket an extra $850,000 for the inconvenience of having spent a week with the Rockets. Not bad for a 10th man who returns to a team that could win it all....

While the Wizards' incumbent shooting guard, Mitch Richmond, missed most of the preseason with a strained right hamstring, rookie Richard Hamilton proved he could fill it up with the big boys. But, like Richmond, Hamilton can play only the two spot, and new coach Gar Heard has said he will use the two players together only late in a game, if the Wizards are down and need scoring. "This is a learning year for Richard," says Heard. "He has the offensive skills, but he has a long way to go defensively."...

Bill Russell has signed on as a tutor for the Celtics' big men. The Hall of Famer recently took forward Antoine Walker out for a three-hour lunch to discuss, among other things, how Russell dealt with racial tension in Boston and how Walker should handle his role as team leader. Walker expected to pick up the check, but, he says, "The minute we walked in the restaurant and they saw Russell, we ate for free."