Shouldn't losing by 29 to the Nets be all-she-wrote for Randy Wittman, whose Wolverines are 4-14? Does any coach have a more erratic substitution pattern? For a while there he even started Jason Collins at center and moved Al Jefferson to macho forward. That experiment blew up last week when Collins and Brian Cardinal (guess Wittman thought they were the future) combined zero points and one rebound in 22 minutes.

Wonder if P.J. Carlesimo will reconsider returning to college coaching once his Thunder guarantee expires? Sources say he turned down overtures to become a genuine candidate for the St. John's job before Norm Roberts got hired on the possibility he would get another NBA head job.

How would you like to be paying Darko Milicic $7 million and read he can't wait until his contract runs out so he can go play in Europe, where he will have the offensive freedom denied to him by the Pistons, Magic and Grizzlies?

Corie Blount was charged with felony drug possession after the fuzz witnessed the former NBA forward collect a package it believed contained marijuana. Upon a search of his home, 29 pounds of the stuff was confiscated. Booked on weed, he claimed his name was spelled "Blunt."

Eric Snow looks more like George Foreman than the ex-heavyweight champ does and might weight as much.

Column castigator Frank Drucker first figured O.J. Simpson might be in trouble when Juice claimed the video and audio of his armed robbery and kidnapping was bogus, that he instead was chipping golf balls with Plaxico Burress.

This just in from column contributor George Caballero: D'Antoni polled the locker room and the players voted unanimously to frag Stephon Marbury in seven seconds or less.

News » Some early impressions on the NBA season
Some early impressions on the NBA season
After visiting the Jose Conseco Fieldhouse Monday, the 19-2 Celtics invade our nation's capital Thursday. Given the way they're playing, David Stern has canceled the remainder of the season, called off the playoffs and ordered them to go straight to the White House. NBA roundup Pierce shuns shooting talk CC, Yankees to meet in Las Vegas Mushnick: Mets abusing fans, again More from The New York Post