It's for Houston. Chicago. The Bay Area. Memphis. Denver. Etc.

It's for the hapless; it is their only hope.

It is not for Dallas, not anymore at least.

Hallelujah.

The Mavericks, with but the 55th pick, aren't, for all intent and purpose, in the 2002 draft on Wednesday. But that's just fine. They don't need to be. They're better than a draft-needy team now. They're one of the best clubs in the league.

When you're club is this good, the draft is rarely of any use, unless you own one of the top picks or discover a Tony Parker, as the Spurs did last summer, late, late, late. When you're a team within sight of the summit, you're not looking for greenhorns. You're looking for longhairs to shove you to the top. The Kings' biggest acquisition last off-season wasn't a rookie. It was a budding NBA guard, Mike Bibby.