If common sense prevailed, the Hornets and Bogues would have parted by now. Bogues could move on to some team that needs him and the Hornets could blend David Wesley in at point guard free of distraction.

But common sense will always lose out to guaranteed contracts, disability insurance and a platoon of lawyers.

There's no obvious villain in this dispute. Bogues shouldn't have to forfeit at least $3.8 million remaining on his contract to buy his freedom. And the Hornets shouldn't have to lose disability-insurance protection by just cutting him, if management really believes Bogues' knee is about to crumble.

But in this case, two rights add up to a wrong. Everyone will lose something -- chemistry, reputation, whatever -- if this continues to be a test of nerves.

Bogues is now an accessory on this roster, since it's so obvious Wesley was brought in to start. At worst, Bogues is a distraction, though Wesley is being smart in insisting he plays no role in the obvious tension between Bogues and management.

Bogues summed up the atmosphere Tuesday by saying, ``When I feel other people aren't looking out for me, I've got to look out for myself.''

That's sad. I would hate to see Bogues end up like Kelly Tripucka, a shrill voice spending the end of his career at the end of Charlotte's bench. Bogues deserves better than to wind up irrelevant; he spent the past decade central to anything good this team has done.

The Hornets need to find some way to help Bogues retain his dignity. You can't put a dollar value on dignity. . . .

But that doesn't mean it's worthless.

AROUND THE EAST: When the Orlando Magic showed up for training camp, there was no three-point line on the practice court. It was no oversight. New coach Chuck Daly thought the Magic was preoccupied with threes last season, so he erased the line to remind the players to penetrate. . . .

Pacers coach Larry Bird was less than kind to Wesley in a recent interview with the New York Post, saying the Hornets' new point guard still hasn't bought into pass first/shoot second: ``Wesley's a good player, but he's going to get off 10-12 shots a game, no matter what, and he can't finish a move once he penetrates.'' . . .

Miami Heat coach Pat Riley hates that the NBA has widened the space to four feet around the basket where no contact can result in a charge. ``This opens up the door to hard fouls, because you're still not going to be giving away layups,'' said Riley, whose team practices taking charges in a football-style drill regularly. . . .

Speaking of the Heat, Miami forward P.J. Brown scoffed at Patrick Ewing's prediction of a Knicks title: ``He's been saying that for the past 10 years. . . . I think the people in New York, they're probably getting tired of hearing it.'' . . .

Former Wake Forest star Randolph Childress was in such disfavor in Detroit the Pistons let him sign with Tofas in Turkey. . . .

Pencil in New Jersey's Keith Van Horn as runner-up to Tim Duncan for rookie of the year. Van Horn has been incredible so far in Nets practice. ``He'll be an all-star in two years,'' says new teammate Jayson Williams. ``He is the truth.''

AROUND THE WEST: Charles Barkley showed up for Rockets training camp 20 pounds overweight after promising to spend the summer working out. Says the Chuckster, ``I lied, I lied, I lied.'' . . .

Rookie Bobby Jackson of Salisbury already looks like the starting point guard in Denver. Of course, he didn't have much competition in ex-Hornet Anthony Goldwire.. . .

Wolfpack and Tar Heels fans should show up for Seattle's visit to Charlotte March 6. Sonics Nate McMillan and Sam Perkins both say they'll retire at the end of this season. . . .

Best one-liner so far on Kevin Garnett's $126-million contract comes from Minnesota teammate Tom Gugliotta. Garnett on a particularly bad shooting day: ``I can't buy a layup.'' Gugs' reply: ``Yes you can!''

THE NUMBERS GAME: With John Long (41) and Durham's Tracy McGrady (18), the Toronto Raptors could start the season with the NBA's oldest and youngest players. McGrady was born in 1979, one year after Long was drafted.

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