Talk about achieving nirvana.

	Steve Smith isn't young anymore, but he can help the Spurs.

Steve Smith went from the Portland Trail Blazers, the most dysfunctional group in the NBA last season -- and that is like being the kookiest inmate at the nuthouse when the only two inmates are Charles Manson and Hannibal Lecter -- to the San Antonio Spurs, who make the Pope look wacky.

Has there ever been a player in the history of the league go from two more divergent programs?

OK, maybe Michael Jordan, considering his transfer from the Chicago Bulls to Washington. But that, I would venture to say, is slightly different circumstances, and Jordan's relocation was more self-propelled out of executive boredom than anything.

"Coming here is a great group of guys," Smith said. "We have a lot of new guys, so I can't really tell you yet about the chemistry because there are so many new guys. But it's been a great transition."

Hey, after his experience in Portland, being traded to the South Bronx Barons would have been a welcome move.

Smith said, in fact, he asked Blazers general manager Bob Whitsitt for the trade that sent him to San Antonio for Derek Anderson, who also wanted to be moved because the Spurs were not willing to meet his salary demands. Mutually beneficial, some might call it.

"The organization made some decisions that a lot of guys didn't agree with," Smith said. "This is the first time in my career that I really wanted to get out of a place and let it be known. Management had a right to do what they wanted -- it was their team -- but I just felt it was best for me to leave."

Where to start?

Well, how about the team adding Rod Strickland toward the end of the season and rocking an already tenuous balance of personalities. After all, Greg Anthony was one of the most stable influences on the Blazers roster, and he was the guy who got kicked to the curb because of Strickland's addition.

But that's not it with Smith. Although he did not complain loudly, he was not too happy to be coming off the bench behind Bonzi Wells, particularly after the team made it to Game 7 of the Western Conference finals -- and nearly into the Finals -- the year before with Smith as the starter.

It also comes down to money, and in the end Smith knew that he was not going to be paid by the Blazers if he was the backup. Now, he is the starting shooting guard for the Spurs, and if he performs he should see more coin thrown his way.

That, however, is a huge if. Because here is where the Spurs stand.

	Robinson

They have this year and next year with Smith, Tim Duncan and David Robinson, then all three of their contracts are up. Free agents.

If they do well, and that may mean winning another championship, then the team is likely to re-sign them, even if they are short-term deals.

But if the team falters, then Robinson may be forced to retire -- or at least go to another team -- and Smith almost certainly won't be brought back. And do you really think Duncan is going to want to stick around for a rebuilding period when he could head off to Orlando and play with Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill and build a Mickey Mouse dynasty?

If I were a betting man -- which I am, but only on stuff you can find in a casino and Vin Baker's rebound totals each night -- I would guess the latter outcome to be true.

Because while the Spurs are talented, they also look old. Smith is creaky-kneed and struggles defensively. Thursday night against the Sonics, he missed his first six shots and seven of nine overall.

Granted it was only one game and it was early in the season, but the young, upstart Sonics had the Spurs so flustered that Gregg Popovich benched Robinson for the entire fourth quarter of San Antonio's 114-108 loss.

"They were playing small," Popovich explained. "It was hard enough for us to rotate to their 3-point shooters. It would be even more difficult for a 7-footer to rotate out to their 3-point shooters."

OK, wait a second. This is the same David Robinson who just signed on for $10 million a year, right? A top 50 player of all time? And Popovich is benching him because A) he can't rotate to Seattle's perimeter guys and B) Robinson is not able to dominate a smaller guy on the offensive end? Am I missing something?

I'm not saying that the Spurs are going to be awful this year based on one game. But they certainly have the looks of going downhill in the next few years with Robinson's bad back, Smith's bad knees and no point guard of which to speak.

But hey, if Smith is going to be on a team that ultimately is not going anywhere, better he be on one that seems sane and has direction rather than one that is rife with absurdity.

	Hughes

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