The New York Knicks have cut center Travis Knight and guard Matt Carroll in order to get their roster down to the mandatory 15 places, meaning Othella Harrington is still a Knick... for now.

Chicago and Toronto have been in discussions with the Knicks about the disgruntled forward, with the Bulls ready to swoop should Harrington be waived.  Tyronne Hill remains another possibility for Chicago.

The Knicks also added forward Maciej Lampe (shin splints), forward Antonio McDyess (left knee surgery) and center Slavko Vranes (right patella tendinitis) have been placed on the Injured List, meaning each will miss a minimum of five games.

The decision to cancel Thursday's exhibition game between the Toronto Raptors and Cleveland Cavaliers is being supported by the NBA.

"It happens, and players' safety is paramount," Brian McIntyre, the NBA's senior vice-president of sports communications, said yesterday in an interview. McIntyre said there would be no repercussions against the Raptors because of the cancellation, which left about 8,000 basketball fans at the soldout Mile One Stadium hooting in derision."

"The NBA exhibition game between Vince Carter's Toronto Raptors and the Cleveland Cavaliers and LeBron James was canceled last night after the Mile One Stadium floor was deemed unsafe to play because of condensation buildup."

One name to surface in the wake of the Antoine Walker-Raef LaFrentz deal is that of Tony Battie. League sources said yesterday that the Celtics had put Battie "in play" even before the Walker trade and that there was interest from Toronto and others. (The Raptors supposedly talked about Antonio Davis.) Yesterday, Battie's agent, Joel Bell, reported nothing new as far as he could see.

"I don't anticipate anything before the start of the season," said Ainge, when asked about any new deals on the horizon. "But that doesn't mean I'm not trying."

"The Knicks have intensified their search to add a scorer after the Chicago Bulls rejected a deal earlier in the week that would have brought Jamal Crawford to New York, according to an Eastern Conference official."

Knicks President Scott Layden also been in talks with Toronto about dealing Othella Harrington for Morris Peterson.

It is also speculated that Milwaukee forward Toni Kukoc as a possibility for the Knicks.

Layden wants to trim down his roster from 16 to 15 players and wants to get a two-for-one deal to get it done.

Carter's quickness and length make him perfectly suited for coach Kevin O'Neill's defensive system because he can force his man to take a long route around a pick-and-roll by fighting through the screen and using his long arms to disrupt plays.

Last year, Toronto Raptors General Manager Glen Grunwald terminated Nate Huffman's contract because he believed he wasn't truthful about a knee injury when they sign him.

At an arbitration hearing that begins today in New York, it will be determined if the Raptors owe Huffman any money from his ill-fated stint with the team.