Back in the summer of 1999, Rod Thorn was still one of the maestros at USA Basketball. He made it down to Puerto Rico for the Tournament of the Americas qualifying tournament and he must have had an epiphany in between bites of the crusted almonds.

	It's payday for new Net MacCulloch and a bunch of others.

He knew the US team. But as he watched the tournament, he must have said to himself, 'if I ever get back into the business of running a team, I know the guy I want.' Was it anyone on the US team? Nope. How about the agile Daniel Santiago, who played for the Puerto Rican team? Nope. Maybe it was Argentinean teenager Andres Nocioni, who is a legend in his homeland for his baseline driving dunk over Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan? Nope. OK, it had to be Steve Nash, who quarterbacked the Canadians? Nope.

We now know who Thorn had penciled in as a future stalwart: Todd MacCulloch, the centre of the Canadian team.

That's right. The genial, albeit glacial center, formerly of the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia 76ers. Thorn was so smitten by what he saw that, two years later, he showered an unthinkable $33 million on the likable but limited big man over the next six years.

That move undeniably is the highlight of all free agent agreements up to this point. And, unless Chris Webber goes to Memphis for the mid-level exception, it will continue to be the standard by which all signings are judged. Signings will officially begin as soon as the NBA and its players' union straightens out its late-night snag regarding the salary cap.

What on earth are they thinking in New Jersey? Don't they already have Jim McIlvaine? We know they're in need of interior play and size, but is the market so confined that we have come to this?

	Stewart

MacCulloch was one of several one-hit wonders who happened to cash in because (a) they sometimes played like an NBA player and (b) their contract is up. Michael Stewart remains the Poster Boy for such largesse, but we'd also have to include McIlvaine, Chucky Atkins, Chris Childs and now, indisputably, MacCulloch in that group.

MacCulloch isn't the only one-hit wonder who hit the jackpot. Eddie Robinson falls in there as well. He never averaged as much as 8 points a game for the Hornets. That didn't stop the Bulls from opening the vault. Tyronn Lue got some meaningful face time for the Lakers in the playoffs, but he's never been much more than an afterthought. That didn't stop Wizard godfather Michael Jordan from making Lue an offer he (or anyone else) couldn't refuse. Lue also has the Jerry West Imprimatur (the Lakers traded for Lue) which made him even more appealing.

So we have some one-hit wonders who've hit the jackpot. They'll be at least one more when some team looks at Marc Jackson's 48-game NBA resume and decides he's the next Jack Sikma. But that hasn't happened yet. Here are some agreements we know have been made.

	Robinson

The Sally Field, 'You Love Me, You Really Do Love Me' Award:
To David Robinson of the Spurs. The Admiral was said to be a bit teed off over the Spurs' decision to slash his $14 million salary in half. We covered a lot of this last week and we heard from San Antonio fans in droves. The clear message: don't diss David. Most Spurs fans have taken leave of their senses, but that's fine. There was little doubt that Robinson would remain in San Antonio, but he needed to be shown a little love. Apparently, $7.5 million wasn't enough. So he got a little more. Wonderful. Instead of being more concerned about improving the team, Robinson needed a little more in his bank account. Just remember, Spurs fans, when the team is a player short next spring because of money concerns, or if Robinson disappears again at the sight of Shaq. We told you so.

	Ewing

The AARP Award:
To The Orlando Magic. We understand this, we really do. Age sells in Florida and the Magic are doing their best to placate the senior set by bringing in relic Patrick Ewing and, perhaps, Horace Grant. Has anyone there seen Ewing play in the last 12 months? Or Grant, when he's not around Shaq? At least the Magic didn't do a financial nutty with either fellow, apparently squeezing both of them into the mid-level exception slot. But hey, they're no Todd MacCulloch. And maybe their veteran savvy and know-how will filter down to the kids. Still, it's going to be weird seeing Ewing in his third uniform in three years. He should have been a New York lifer.

The Canadian Tourism Award:
To the Toronto Raptors. Do you have any idea how far $64 million (US) goes in Canada at the current exchange rate? Toronto GM Glen Grunwald has established himself as the man to beat for the 2001-2002 Executive of the Year Award. He got burned last summer and he learned his lesson. He knew Antonio Davis had nowhere else to go unless Davis wanted to take a financial beating (yeah, right) or wanted to play for the 15-wins-or-bust Chicago Bulls. I'm still not sure how this will look in four years, when Davis is 37 and pulling down huge dollars. But, with the re-signings of Davis and Jerome Williams, Grunwald has done what many thought impossible. Now, all he has to do is get Vince Carter's John Hancock on an extension and he can make a strong case for Executive of the Decade.

	Houston

The Gomez Addams Free-Spending Award:
To the Knicks. Addams, the patriarch of television's 'The Addams Family,' used to open table drawers in his house and pull out piles of cash and spend it freely. The Knicks have re-signed Allan Houston to about $100 million or so and then, for reasons unknown, dropped about $27 million on Clarence Weatherspoon. He's due to back up Kurt Thomas, who backs up Larry Johnson, who should be backing up Marcus Camby, but can't, because Camby has to play center. And LJ can't really play anymore because of a bad back. Somewhere, Dave Checketts has to be grinning. And does Mr. Dolan understand that there's going to be a sizable check due when the luxury tax is introduced? Meanwhile, they still have a glut of guards. But the real tough news coming out of Gotham is that Luc Longley may be considering retirement. How will the Knicks ever recover from that?

The 12 O'Clock And All's Well Award:
To the Boston Celtics. Content to rest on the laurels of a 36-46 season, the Celtics did nothing to improve their glaring deficiencies in rebounding or defense (unless you count the hiring of Dick Harter.) Instead, they got more three-point shooters out of the draft in three wingmen and have adopted the novel approach that they will outscore you no matter what it takes. They will do nothing in free agency. Hey, at least they could be entertaining, if nothing else.

Peter May, who covers the NBA for the Boston Globe, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.