Unless he can brainwash Cleveland general manager Jim Paxson into surrendering point guard Andre Miller in a trade, it appears that Knicks general manager Scott Layden's free-agent shopping this summer will be limited to a modest offer to Cavs backup center Michael Doleac. Unrestricted free-agent center Keon Clark of Toronto is virtually out of the picture because Layden is unwilling to pay him the full $4.55- million midlevel salary-cap exception.

The days of overspending for mediocre talent, as the Knicks did last year when they traded Glen Rice for expensive, long-term obligations to benchwarmers Shandon Anderson and Howard Eisley, are over. If Layden felt Clark was worth it after averaging career highs of 11.3 points and 7.4 rebounds in only 27 minutes per game last season, he'd pay, but an NBA source indicated that the Knicks don't believe anyone in this summer's market is worth the full exception.

If Clark won't take less, the Knicks' search for a big man leads directly to Doleac by process of elimination. Seattle already re-signed center Jerome James, and second-year man Jarron Collins is expected to re-sign with Utah. Minnesota GM Kevin McHale has made it clear that he will match any offer to restricted free-agent center Rasho Nesterovic.

According to Greg Logan, that leaves the 6-11, 262-pound Doleac, and he would have to settle for little more than half the midlevel exception. There is competition, but Doleac can't command much more after a season in which he played only 42 games and averaged 4.6 points and 4.0 rebounds. One thing in the Knicks' favor is that Doleac has a brother attending nearby West Point.