WILMINGTON, N.C. -- Here are five observations of the Washington Wizards from training camp:

	The media hasn't seen much of Michael Jordan -- on the court anyway.

1. Michael Jordan is limiting himself to one practice a day and working out with his personal trainer, Tim Grover, during the skipped practices. No indication yet, though, on whether he is going to force his way into the starting lineup or come off the bench as widely anticipated. "That'll be something done later," Wizards coach Doug Collins said. The bulk of Jordan's reps to date have been conducted out of media range, but the one scrimmage that was opened up to the press couldn't have been more impressive. Jordan entered the fray with 1:32 to play and his team trailing by five points and promptly picked Jerry Stackhouse clean before sailing downcourt for a dunk. Jordan added a jumper to cut the deficit to one, then set up Horacio Llamas (yes, that Horacio Llamas) for the scrimmage-winning jumper. "We want him to be fresh," Collins said. "We want him to build as the season goes. If he's going to be able to be the guy we need as the season goes, we really have to monitor (things). Both of us together, we sit down and chart out a course where he's going to be at his best."

2. Eyes rolled on the first day of camp when Kwame Brown reported a sore hamstring, with the Wiz intent on trying to toughen the kid up. But Brown has since played himself into a shot at opening the season as Washington's starting power forward, helped along by Etan Thomas (the preseason favorite) missing time with his own health issues. Brown will again be shielded from scrutiny to a degree with Jordan and Stackhouse around, but Collins has acknowledged that the Wiz power-brokers (himself included) have to reach Brown this season and help the 2001 No. 1 overall pick establish an NBA comfort level. Quickly.

3. Stackhouse, for one, would love to see Charles Oakley sign on to supply some toughness up front. Brendan Haywood and Jahidi White (when healthy) isn't a bad center tandem by East standards, but Oakley could provide what Popeye Jones took to Dallas. The issue is getting Oakley to take the veteran minimum, and then making sure he teaches Brown the good stuff, compared to Oak's ill-fated mentor stint with lowly Chicago. "I think he's going to sign with us (eventually)," Stack said. "Just imagine that lineup: Jordan, Oakley, Bryon Russell, Stackhouse. That's a veteran team."

4. The Wizards are thrilled with Jared Jeffries' camp performance, his ability to cover ground defensively as much as his known skills. Rookies figure to struggle to find minutes on this team, but Jeffries is apparently forcing his way into the rotation. Tyronn Lue is another outstanding camp performer, which is interesting because Collins has to sort out the minutes between his point guards (Lue and Chris Whitney) and determine how much Larry Hughes is going to play there. "As a coach I've always believed those things sort themselves out," Collins said, shaking his head in the negative when asked if his glut at the 1, 2 and 3 spots is a potential problem.

5. Saw it with my own eyes: Patrick Ewing, in Wiz garb, coaching the Wiz big men. There will inevitably be suspicions about Ewing trying to score an actual jersey from Collins, but so far he's in all the coach's meetings and operating as a full-fledged assistant. "I know he likes it," insists White, who has worked with Ewing for years as a fellow Georgetown Hoya.

Marc Stein is the senior NBA writer for ESPN.com. E-mail him at marc.stein@espn3.com.