Around The Rim

The thinking behind the Raptors' willingness to deal shooting guard Doug Christie for a point guard is that they can then move free-agent-to-be Tracy McGrady into Christie's starting spot, which would make McGrady more likely to resign. Yet sources close to McGrady say he wants to land in a warm-weather city—say, Orlando, where he's building a home. Warriors playmaker Mookie Blaylock also abhors the cold, which is why he nixed a swap for Christie. Toronto may now take another run at the Magic's Darrell Armstrong....

The practice gym was so cold in Atlanta's Philips Arena last week that the Hawks wore long sleeves under their jerseys, and coach Lenny Wilkens, dressed in full warmups, called the session off early for fear that his players would get injured....

Agent Dwight Manley called the Lakers, hoping to persuade them to acquire his new client, disgruntled Wizards center Ike Austin, but Los Angeles wasn't interested in taking on Austin's contract, which has two years and $11 million remaining....

The Rockets were set to retire Clyde Drexler's number 22 this Thursday, which makes us wonder, So what are the Trail Blazers waiting for? True, Drexler never won a championship in Portland, as he did in Houston, but he was an eight-time All-Star as a Blazer. Could it be that the team is still fuming over the parting shots Drexler took at the front office on the way out of town?