Believe in each other.

"What David said to us was very important," Ferry said. "It's also one of those things we don't want to have happen that often. We want to lead by going out and playing hard and winning and doing the right things."

Ferry more than adequately filled that role Tuesday night. He hit the open shot ? including two key 3-pointers in the final quarter ? played smart defense, and helped pace the Spurs to a much-needed 99-91 win over Phoenix on Tuesday night at the Alamodome.

"It's not that he scores a bunch of points, he just knows how to play the game," Tim Duncan said. "That's why I love having him on the floor. He does all the little things that help get a team on a roll."

"We have to be realistic about ourselves," David Robinson said after the Spurs' 92-83 loss at America West Arena on Sunday. "We're not a championship-caliber team right now. We've got to build up and put the blocks on top of one another. We've got to begin to at least get some confidence and momentum going toward the playoffs."

As of now, the Spurs are picking up speed only as they fall through the standings. Sunday's loss reduced their grip on the Western Conference's fifth playoff seed to four games over Utah and Portland.

Of the two major deals the Celtics explored before the trade deadline, general manager Chris Wallace made the right choice in engineering the five-player exchange with Phoenix. By acquiring Rodney Rogers and Tony Delk from the Suns for Joe Johnson, Milt Palacio, Randy Brown and a first-round pick, Wallace improved his team without disrupting its core.

Had they acquired Nick Van Exel from Denver, the Celtics would likely have dealt Johnson and Kenny Anderson among others. It's always a risky proposition at this stage of the season to deal away a starter, while acclimating a new one. With the Phoenix deal, Anderson stays aboard and the Celtics' starting lineup remains in tact. Meanwhile, Delk and Rogers, two capable scorers who will help take the heat off Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce, get to work their way into the mix with the second unit. That's a good setup.

ALLAS - There were 50-60 tickets available for Thursday night's Suns-Grizzlies game in Memphis. That's because native Tennessean Tony Delk wasn't around to distribute them to friends and family.

Instead, he was 45 minutes away, in his hometown of Brownsville, Tenn., tending to his ailing father, Leslie. But that wasn't why Delk wasn't playing in Memphis. By then, he was no longer a Sun. By then, he was a Boston Celtic.

''We took a trip [to Memphis] for nothing,'' Delk said yesterday prior to his first practice with his new team. ''We flew to Memphis for the game and we made the trip thinking there wasn't going to be a trade. As soon as we landed, they dumped the news on us. It came as a surprise. But those guys [Suns executives] knew. The organization didn't give us that much respect, to let us know that they had a trade in mind.''

DALLAS - Rodney Rogers disagreed strongly when asked if he thought he was stepping into a good situation with the Celtics.

``It's not a good situation here,'' said the 6-foot-7 forward acquired from Phoenix on Wednesday with Tony Delk for Joe Johnson, Milt Palacio, Randy Brown and a first-round pick. ``It's a great situation. It's a great situation to be in. It's a nice, young team, and Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker have been carrying the team. Hopefully me and Tony can add to the supporting cast. They're our horses and we've got to ride them.''

Rogers was in uniform last night as the Celts took on the Mavericks, but C's coach Jim O'Brien said he planned to go light with his new arrivals until the club gets home and they can get a few practices under their belts.

Delk arrived in Dallas last night after visiting his father, who had suffered a stroke, in Tennessee.

ALLAS - It was the spring of 1999 and Rick Pitino already was looking forward to the upcoming free agent crop. Several names intrigued him, including the Los Angeles Clippers' Rodney Rogers.

''What I'm looking for,'' Pitino said then, ''is someone who is a little down in his luck or someone who, for whatever reason, may have underachieved and needs a new start.'' He mentioned Rogers by name.

That was because Rogers was a Clipper and, back then, being a Clipper usually meant you either underachieved or were down in the dumps. It also almost inevitably meant you'd go elsewhere when your contract expired, which is exactly what Rogers did.

Doug Smith of the Toronto Star reports that just because the Toronto Raptors aren't expected to do anything substantial before today's NBA trade deadline passes doesn't mean they didn't consider a big move.

Sources indicate the team discussed as late as last week a move to obtain the enigmatic Penny Hardaway from the Phoenix Suns in what would have been a blockbuster move to rival general manager Glen Grunwald's makeover of a year ago.

But before fans rush out to purchase No.1 Raptor jerseys (and not in memory of the departed Tracy McGrady) the proposed deal was dead as of last night.

And Grunwald continues to reiterate that he's got nothing on the go otherwise, although he's taking phone calls from other general managers.

he Celtics yesterday sent a clear message to the NBA that they take themselves very seriously in any discussion of Eastern Conference contenders by executing a significant trade with the Phoenix Suns.

The deal almost enters the ''too-good-to-be-true'' category. Boston gave up rookie forward Joe Johnson, veteran guard Randy Brown, backup point guard Milt Palacio, and their first-round draft pick for 2002. In exchange, they acquired the services of 6-foot-7-inch forward Rodney Rogers and 6-2 shooting guard Tony Delk.

ESPN is reporting the Boston Celtics have sent Joe Johnson, Milt Palacio, Randy Brown and their number one pick in this year's draft for the Suns Tony Delk and Rodney Rogers.

The Celtics are obviously looking to solidfy their run for the post-season with two very potent reserve players while the Suns look to the future with the promising Johnson and the draft pick.

The trade seemingly puts Boston out of contention for Nuggets guard Nick Van Exel. Speculation had the Celtics offering Johnson, Brown and Kenny Anderson in a deal for Van Exel, but talks apparently died when Van Exel refused to waive the guaranteed salary on the last two seasons of his contract.

Rumors persist that the Warriors will make Marc Jackson's dream come true and send him packing before tomorrow's 3 p.m. PST trade deadline. One report has Jackson going to the Knicks along with forward Erick Dampier in a three-way deal with Phoenix that could bring Suns guard Anfernee Hardaway and/or the injured Marcus Camby to Golden State.

Then again, Jackson could end up in Milwaukee, along with teammate Danny Fortson and possibly Larry Hughes for high-scoring veteran Glenn Robinson and the Bucks' No. 1 draft pick.