Spurs Take Cheap Way Out By Signing Pair Of Veterans

A contender signs two veterans: one a guard with a rap sheet of bad behavior, one a soon-to-be 37-year-old leaper who can’t elevate to the penthouse anymore. You could characterize the moves as bold. Or desperate.

Maybe the San Antonio Spurs are both.

There is risk in welcoming Vernon Maxwell and Dominique Wilkins. Not from a money standpoint; both became the latest of a swelling group of players to settle for the $247,500 minimum. But with Maxwell, there is the danger of reading his name in another section of the newspaper. And with ‘Nique on the floor, the shot clock will never expire.

Yet the Spurs need exactly what Maxwell and Wilkins bring. “We’re both guys who know how to perform under pressure, and we have some toughness,” Wilkins says.

Anyone who saw the Spurs in their last few playoff exits understands.

Dennis Rodman was the perfect fit for the Spurs, but G.M. Gregg Popovich and the owners couldn’t stomach his act.

Then, when they wilted against the Utah Jazz last spring while Rodman energized the Chicago Bulls to an NBA title, it became clear what the Spurs sacrificed.

The Spurs are some of the nicest guys you’d want to meet and are talented enough to win 60 games and a division title. Come playoff time, however, they lack elements - nerves and good ol’ gutcheck - that separate those with rings from those without.

The great free-agent offseason dealt them a double jeopardy. They had no money to spend, others did.

Now the Los Angeles Lakers, Seattle SuperSonics and Houston Rockets are improved.

And the thought of another great regular season followed by an early vacation forced the Spurs in the direction of two players few teams clamored for.