Steve Wyche of the Washington Post reports that the Wizards finalized their roster yesterday by waiving George McCloud and Bobby Simmons. This means that Ratko Varda will make the team even though he has seen limited minutes because of injury.

"We never really got a chance to see Varda," Wizards Coach Doug Collins said. "I feel bad for Bobby. When I told him this morning it was one of the hardest things I've had to do because he was one of the nicest people I've ever met -- and he's good."

McCloud?s release was expected. He was just acquired from the Nuggets in exchange for Chris Whitney but the Wizards never seemed like they wanted him on the roster. The trade was made to give Whitney a chance to play somewhere else.

The team spent most of Monday unsuccessfully trying to negotiate a buyout of McCloud?s salary this season. No agreement could be reached, so the team will pay the entire $2.6 million. After he clears waivers, McCloud will be able to sign with any team for the veterans minimum.

I have to wait two days to get cleared on waivers but I'm not stressed," McCloud told the Denver Post. "Whatever happens, happens, but I feel I will get picked up." Milwaukee, Boston and Orlando have expressed interest in McCloud, according to a league source.

Jerry Brewer of the Orlando Sentinel reports: The big scare over the little man proved anticlimactic.

Point guard Darrell Armstrong received the best possible news about his right shoulder Wednesday.

He underwent magnetic resonance imaging, and tests revealed no separation, no ligament damage and no torn rotator cuff. Armstrong has been diagnosed with a strained right shoulder.

The Magic's emotional leader is expected to miss the next 7-10 days, which puts his availability for Tuesday's season opener against the Philadelphia 76ers in question. His rehabilitation will consist of ice therapy, muscle stimulation and range-of-motion exercises.

"It's sore as you-know-what," Armstrong said as he left RDV Sportsplex.

Armstrong injured his shoulder in the second quarter of the Magic's preseason victory against the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night.

Because of this, Orlando faces roster decisions and with Thirteen players having guaranteed contracts, but Steven Hunter is out until at least December rehabilitating his right knee. The Magic want to add one more player to their opening-night roster, but they want to spend $500,000 or less on him.

The Magic have a salary-cap number of about $50.1 million right now. The organization does not want to go over $51 million because it fears the luxury tax.

If Burke is cut, the total would go back to around $50 million and Orlando could sign Rod Strickland, Mookie Blaylock, or Tim Hardaway to a one year deal and avoid the projected $51 million freshold.

Before Armstrong went down, the likely canadiate for the 14th spot was Pat Burke who would cost only 349,458 to the magic's payroll.

Now,with Armstrong's injury and Jacque's Vaughn's inconsistent play, things are up in the air for that 14th spot.

The Orlando Magic waived forward/center Obinna Ekezie and center Peter Cornell today, general manager John Gabriel said.

Ekezie appeared in five preseason games with Orlando, averaging 5.2 points and 4.4 rebounds a game. Cornell played in six preseason games with averages of 1.7 points and 2.3 rbounds.

The Magic's roster now stands at 14.

Numerous times this month, Horace Grant has wondered aloud whether he made the right choice in having arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.

"If I had to do it all over again, I probably wouldn't have had surgery," Grant said. "I would've just tried to fight through the pain."

In his previous 15 NBA seasons, he never has been through anything such as this. As a lifer in the post, he has been remarkably durable. He has played with -- and through -- pain.

Now 37, Grant knows his body's recuperative powers aren't the same. A proud player and the owner of four championship rings, Grant has always wanted to avoid leaving the game as a plodding, lumbering player who can't contribute much.

When he practiced Monday for the first time this season and discovered how much work he has left, he was frightened.

Grant won't be in uniform at 8 tonight when the Orlando Magic play Memphis at The Pyramid. He wants to play Tuesday when the Grizzlies come to TD Waterhouse Centre, but he might not see his first action until the preseason finale Thursday against Dallas. Grant expects to be at full strength for the season opener Oct. 29 against Philadelphia, but he has pondered whether he might have to sit out.

"I tried to dunk the other day, and it just wasn't there," the 6-foot-10 forward/center said.

Grant had surgery in mid-September. He spent most of the off-season relaxing, thinking he was retired until owner Rich DeVos persuaded him to play one more year. When he began working out in September, the pain in his left knee still existed, the same pain that caused him to take four Advils each game day last season.

The Magic are not as worried as Grant, especially because it has been only about five weeks since the surgery. Typically, the recovery time for that type of procedure is 4-6 weeks.

"We're in no hurry," Coach Doc Rivers said. "We don't want to rush him and have the knee problem linger all year."

Grant said he has experienced no pain cutting, but he gets no lift when he jumps.

"Could he get off the ground before?" Rivers joked. "I didn't realize he could before. He's never had any cuts on his knee, so it's something different for him."

Grant's absence has proven how much this team needs him. A steady, consistent post presence has been lacking. Grant doesn't hesitate to admit how age has affected his game, but he is still the most knowledgeable and accomplished big man on the roster. Rivers may limit Grant's minutes at the beginning of the season.

"I know what Horace can do," Rivers said. "The only question mark is how long he can do it."

TONIGHT: Memphis Grizzlies, 8, The Pyramid in Memphis

PRESEASON RECORDS: Magic 2-2, Grizzlies 1-4.

BROADCAST: TV -- None. Radio -- 580 AM (WDBO) in Orlando; Spanish coverage on 1440 AM (WPRD).

MAGIC UPDATE: With every game, stars Grant Hill and Tracy McGrady are becoming more comfortable with each other. They had their best performance to date as a duo in Tuesday's 103-90 victory against New Orleans. Hill scored 15 points and McGrady 12, but there were many times when the two were perfectly in sync. As he progresses with his conditioning, the Magic are likely to increase Shawn Kemp's minutes. Kemp started Tuesday and scored eight points in 16 minutes. Horace Grant (left knee) and Steven Hunter (right knee) will not play.

GRIZZLIES UPDATE: Memphis has been getting long looks at newcomers Drew Gooden and Gordan Giricek this preseason. Both players are averaging more than 35 minutes per game. Gooden has been particularly impressive, averaging 19 points and 12 rebounds. Pau Gasol, last season's rookie of the year, has not played because he is resting a sprained wrist. Guard Michael Dickerson has been limited to one preseason game thus far as he recovers from a groin injury that kept him out of all but four games last season.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: It's another exhibition game, which means get the prominent players in, accomplish small goals and make sure they leave without injury.

Magic Coach Doc Rivers began the preseason saying that three starting spots -- point guard, power forward and center -- were open. Only Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill were announced as starters.

Eleven days before the season opener, the probable opening-night lineup is becoming easier to decipher. Rivers has seen enough of point guard Jacque Vaughn to carry on with the idea of starting Vaughn and bringing Darrell Armstrong off the bench. Hill will not start the season as a point forward, and forward Mike Miller will remain in a sixth-man role.

Vaughn has missed 13 of 18 shots in four preseason games, but Rivers said he is confident that Vaughn can make the open shot. Vaughn, who played in Atlanta last season, missed his first 22 field-goal attempts to start the 2001-02 season. His defensive intensity, hustle and ability to run the offense are unquestioned.

"He doesn't shoot it bad," Rivers said. "Fans remember the first five games last year. They look at that, and I bet they thought he shot poorly. Well, he was third in three-point percentage (44 percent).

"It's misleading because he didn't have a lot of attempts. But we're not asking him to take 20-25 shots. If he takes five, six, 10 shots a game and hits a good percentage, that's fine."

Pat Garrity likely will be the starter at power forward. Rivers likes the way his shooting ability opens the floor for Hill and McGrady.

"He's making a case that he's not going to allow anybody to overtake him," Rivers said of Garrity, who started 43 games last season.

Because no one has starred in the post, Horace Grant is expected to start there again. If Grant is limited by left knee problems, Shawn Kemp could start.

So far so good

Eighteen days into preparation for the season, Rivers likes where his team is right now. Only Grant and Steven Hunter (torn right anterior cruciate ligament) have missed significant time. The health and focus of the team has him optimistic.

"We're right where we want to be," Rivers said. "I can feel the confidence. I can feel the momentum."

Burke taking his shot

Forward/center Pat Burke, who is trying to earn a roster spot, wants to make it in the NBA after playing five years overseas. He has turned down guaranteed contracts from New York, Chicago and Cleveland in the past because he had more lucrative offers overseas.

Now he has 6-month-old twins. Burke wants to stay at his Mount Dora home and not make his family travel.

"I'd love for them to be here in the States," Burke said. "The last five years I've missed out on family and friends."

DeVos to attend

Owner Rich DeVos is expected to be at the Magic's next home exhibition game, which is Tuesday against Memphis.

If his schedule works out the way he'd like, DeVos will participate in the meet-and-greet session the players have with fans who enter TD Waterhouse Centre.

One by one, they all have scolded Mike Miller this month. It's like initiation. You cannot be a member of the Orlando Magic unless you are screaming at him to shoot more.

If it weren't for all the piercing glares, Miller might chuckle.

"I have one of the greatest jobs in the world," Miller says. "Just shoot and score."

There are less glamorous tasks, for sure. Miller has the blessing of Coach Doc Rivers and all-stars Grant Hill and Tracy McGrady to shoot whenever. Every Tom, Dick and Szczerbiak covets that opportunity.

The only problem is Miller wasn't born with the desire to shoot until his elbow is sore. In his two NBA seasons, Miller has left that to guys such as Minnesota guard Wally Szczerbiak. And the thing is, Miller may own the prettiest jumper of any young player in the NBA.

"I've never met a great shooter who misses a couple of shots and then doesn't shoot," Rivers said.

At times, Miller has been that kind of player. He is a pure shooter, but not in the Pat Garrity mold. Miller is a pure shooter with enough athleticism to get off good shoots at any time. He has the skills to become a scorer. There is even more game in him than the 15.2 points per game he averaged last season.

In practices, the players have joined the coaching staff in admonishing Miller for passing up shots. Even if another player is open, they want Miller shooting. Their tone goes from playful to semi-serious to cursing.

"We are going to make him a flat-out scorer, and he is going to buy into it," Rivers said.

The early signs are encouraging. Miller scored a team-high 20 points against New Orleans on Tuesday. He is averaging the most points and shots per 48 minutes of any Magic player this preseason.

Right now, the Magic are using him off the bench, and he has been instant offense. Still, that's not good enough. They want him to shoot even more.

They want him to shoot so much that scoring is ingrained. When the long regular season begins and a slump occurs, they want him to fight through five-of-16 and six-of-19 shooting nights and keep playing. As good as Miller's shot is, he will not be in slumps for long.

During the preseason, he plays some extended minutes when McGrady and Hill are not in the game. Come opening night, all three will be on the floor for much of the time that Miller plays.

The Magic don't want him to defer. They want him to shoot his long-range jumper and spread the floor. He can mix in some occasional drives to the basket, too, but the Magic don't need so much duplication on the floor.

"I'm going to concentrate on filling that role this year," Miller said. "With Grant healthy, I don't have to do as much. I'm going to be there. I'm still going to want everything to go in every game. But I'm going to believe in my shot and shoot the ball. I'll do that until someone tells me different."

They won't tell him different.

"If he makes it or misses, he has to shoot," Hill said.

"Who can guard us when he's on, playing aggressive like that?" McGrady asked.

As the Magic's No. 2 option last season, Miller averaged 12.7 shots per game. He averaged 10.3 shots as a rookie. Even with Hill back, Miller needs to average more than 15 shots a night.

"I'm ready to go," Miller said. "My eagerness has a lot to do with me being injured late last year. I can come back and have a great and exciting year. We have a chance to win. I'm excited to do whatever it takes."

Wade through the blas? feel of the preseason, and the Orlando Magic quietly have an intense roster situation at hand, one that figures to be complicated and disheartening for players, coaches and team management.

Two players invited to this veteran's camp have proven themselves as players worthy of roster spots. Pat Burke and Obinna Ekezie have used their diverse talents and shown that they could plug some of the frontcourt holes. The Magic would like to keep both players on their 15-man roster.

However, there is a certain thing called the luxury tax looming, which could put a hex on those plans.

Ekezie started the exhibition season playing well, and Burke has proved his worth with strong performances the past two games. He scored 10 points Tuesday night as the Magic beat the undermanned New Orleans Hornets 103-90 at TD Waterhouse Centre. New Orleans played without injured starters P.J. Brown, Elden Campbell and Baron Davis. Courtney Alexander also sat in street clothes.

Decision time is now 12 days away. The Magic's final roster must be set on Oct. 28, one day before they open the season against Philadelphia.

"I don't want to think about it too much," Burke said.

Seventeen players are currently on the roster. Thirteen have guaranteed contracts, including center Steven Hunter, who will be out until December recovering from right knee surgery.

In theory, two spots remain open. In reality, the Magic have enough money to sign one more player to a guaranteed contract and stay in that safe area under the luxury tax. The Magic fear thatif they go over $51 million, they will exceed the projected tax threshold and suffer numerous penalties, including a dollar-for-dollar tax.

The Magic could make a trade to free up money and a roster spot, but that is unlikely. They may be forced to choose between Burke and Ekezie. Burke, who is 6-11 and 255 pounds, fits in more as a shooter.

Magic Coach Doc Rivers said he is making the team run during practice whenever Burke passes up an open shot.

Ekezie, at 6-9 and 270 pounds, is more of a true post player.

"I can provide what the Magic need," said Ekezie, who had eight points and five rebounds Tuesday. "I am physical and can be aggressive out there."

It's hard to tell what's real and what's preseason illusion right now. Burke and Ekezie look good, but the Magic are also playing without injured forward/center Horace Grant. And Shawn Kemp has played limited minutes in the preseason as he betters his conditioning. Kemp started Tuesday and scored eight points in 16 minutes.

When the season begins, Grant is likely to play 25 minutes, and Kemp could play 20 or more.

"It's going to work out well for me," says Kemp, who has been working out twice a day, even on game days. "These guys in this locker room know what's going to happen. When the season starts, people will get a chance to see what's going to happen this year."

If Grant and Kemp are there and rookie forward Ryan Humphrey continues to improve, the Magic's need for more bodies in the post shrinks.

"It's going to be a committee for this team's big men," Ekezie said. "It'll be interesting to see how it works out."

At least they can laugh now.

"You're opening those old wounds up, huh?" Orlando Magic Coach Doc Rivers joked.

The Charlotte Hornets are the New Orleans Hornets now, but it makes no difference to the Magic. Their memories are of a big, bruising team that battered them during a first-round playoff series last spring.

The teams will meet again at 7 tonight at TD Waterhouse Centre for a preseason game, and the Magic are eager to see what their revamped frontcourt can do against the Eastern Conference's most rugged group.

The Hornets likely will be without starting big men P.J. Brown and Elden Campbell, so if the Magic have success, they will keep it in perspective. Despite that, the Hornets jersey still represents what the Magic failed to do last season.

The Hornets left the Magic swollen and limping. They outrebounded the Magic 200-158 in four games and won the best-of-five series 3-1.

Rivers is not going to let the Magic forget such a beating.

"I hope not," Rivers said. "They destroyed us on the boards. It's amazing when you look at the rebounding numbers that those games were close. If someone looked at the stat sheet and saw those rebounding numbers, they'd say, 'It's a blowout.'

"I couldn't figure that one out, to be honest. We remember that, and that's one of the areas we have to improve on. If we don't, we're going nowhere."

It's difficult to tell where the Magic's frontcourt stands. They are working hard, as evidenced by the "Big Man's Club" extra drills that the coaches designed to make or break the players.

Horace Grant practiced for the first time Monday as he recovers from surgery on his left knee, but he is not expected to play. Shawn Kemp has focused more on conditioning than game preparation this preseason. Newcomer Olumide Oyedeji sometimes looks lost trying to learn the system. Andrew DeClercq is looking to be more consistent. Pat Burke and Obinna Ekezie are playing well, but both are unproven.

"I don't think you have to be considered rugged," Kemp said. "You just have to be able to get the job done."

What equates to getting the job done is an interesting question for the Magic. A nice first step would be holding their own on the glass. The Magic's big men are striving to do so.

"I've seen a lot of underdogs come up and be something great," Oyedeji said.

He can't help it. Every time Magic Coach Doc Rivers starts talking about tonight's preseason opponent, he refers to them as the Charlotte Hornets.

"I probably called them Charlotte 15 times today," a flummoxed Rivers said after Monday's practice. "They're New Orleans, right?"

That's the rumor, anyway. The Orlando Magic will host the New Orleans Jazz, er, Hornets tonight and later this week they will play the Vancouver Grizzlies. Or is it the Memphis Grizzlies? Or the Memphis Showboats? Or the Memphis Texans?

Does anybody really know what team it is? Does anybody really care?

What we do know is this: Cities and the elected officials who run them are the most fiscally irresponsible boneheads in the world. They spend like a bunch of drunken Democrats. I'm not talking about taxpayer money being spent to get teams or even to keep teams; I'm talking about spending even more taxpayer money to get new teams when much less money could have been spent to keep the old teams.

Take Charlotte. The city steadfastly refused to build a new arena for the Hornets -- which is understandable considering how owner George Shinn poisoned the ticket-buying public against him. But what did Shinn care? He simply packed up his team and moved to New Orleans, where a new arena and sweetheart lease agreement awaited.

At first, Charlotte fans never thought Shinn would leave. They never thought the NBA would let him leave. Then, when it was clear he was about to leave, they huffed, "Let him go. We're better off without the NBA."

And the minute the Hornets left, you know what Charlotte did? It got down on its knees, crawled straight to the NBA and begged for an expansion franchise. So now the city must build a $257.5 million arena and find an owner willing to pay a $300 million expansion fee to the league. And, oh, by the way, that expansion fee will be split among the existing owners, which means Charlotte will be putting about $12 million in Shinn's pocket. Poetic injustice.

To summarize: Charlotte will spend in the neighborhood of $600 million for an expansion team full of rookies and rejects that won't be competitive for a decade. Wouldn't it have been much simpler and cheaper just to keep the Hornets -- a talented playoff team and one of the favorites to win the Eastern Conference?

Are you listening, Orlando? The arena issue with the Magic has been put on the back burner for now, but it's going to resurface sooner than you might think. And how many times do we have to say this: In the long run, team owners always win.

Cleveland wouldn't build Browns owner Art Modell a new stadium, but Baltimore would. So Modell moved his NFL team, and Cleveland ended up spending nearly twice as much to build a new stadium for an expansion franchise. Same with Houston, which let the Oilers move to Nashville and then built a $500 million stadium and paid a $700 million fee for the expansion Texans.

We all know sooner or later that Orlando is going to have to build a new arena to keep the Magic. That's a given. TD Waterhouse Centre, while not physically antiquated, is economically antiquated. Which is to say it is not built to efficiently suck the most money out of the richest fans.

The Hornets have moved to New Orleans, and the Magic will someday soon face Charlotte's dilemma.

For sports owners, home is not where the heart is; home is where the publicly funded $300 million arena is.

You can pay them now or pay them more later.

Mike Bianchi