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Of the league's elite teams — the Pistons, Mavericks, Spurs and Suns — only the Pistons seem intent on trying to make a deal. They'd like a third point guard, so it won't be a major move.

"We haven't gotten many calls," Spurs coach and executive vice-president of basketball operations Gregg Popovich said. "Mostly, it's just peripheral stuff."

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If the Spurs are going to make any roster changes, they appear more likely to sign a player instead of trade for one.

With the NBA's trade deadline arriving at 2 p.m. Thursday, the Spurs don't have any deals imminent, though they continue to explore their options. Among the possibilities is signing swingman Tim Thomas if Chicago decides to waive him.

Spurs assistant coach Don Newman has a good relationship with Thomas from their days in Milwaukee. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich also had tried to sign Thomas before he re-signed with the Bucks.

The Bulls acquired Thomas when they sent Eddy Curry to New York last summer, but he appeared in only three games. After Thomas complained more than once about his role, Chicago officials told him to spend the rest of the season at home in New Jersey while they worked to trade him.

Thomas is being paid $14 million this season, the final year of his contract.

The Spurs had success after signing Glenn Robinson late last season. Robinson, like Thomas, was not regarded as a hard worker or a defender, but did his best to fit in with the team.

While the Spurs can only sign Thomas if the Bulls release him, there is one notable swingman still available on the free-agent market: Latrell Sprewell.

Popovich had a good relationship with Sprewell when both were in Golden State. When the Spurs discussed trying to trade for Sprewell three summers ago, assistant coach P.J. Carlesimo said he would have no problem reuniting with the player who choked him.

"He's a fantastic competitor," Popovich said. "We've talked about him, and he's somebody I've thought about for a long time. But at this point we're not sure if taking on another person even makes sense or if he'd even be willing to do something like that."

Horry out: One reason the Spurs might try to add another player is their concern over Robert Horry's health.

Horry's hip was bothering him after Tuesday morning's shootaround, scrapping Popovich's plan to play him against Seattle.

The Spurs think Horry's hip injury is related to the lower abdominal strain that has limited him to four games since Jan. 16.

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Popovich continued to downplay the Spurs' chances to make a trade before today's 2p.m. deadline, but team officials were continuing to make calls late Wednesday. The Spurs need to get younger and more athletic on the perimeter, if not this season, then for the future.

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The deal began to unravel around an hour before the NBA's 2 p.m. deadline. When the Hornets acquired Marc Jackson and Linton Johnson III for Bostjan Nachbar in a trade with New Jersey, they no longer had the salary-cap room needed to absorb the difference between Barry's and Smith's contracts.

The Spurs and New Orleans tried to get Atlanta involved to help facilitate the trade, but couldn't get it done in time.

From the moment he learned he might be traded to the time Popovich phoned back to tell him the deal was off, Barry had almost four hours to wonder about his future.

"I wish there had been a local bar that was open," he said, "but it was 10 in the morning."

The trade would have allowed the Spurs to get younger and more athletic, as well as relieved them of the two seasons and $11 million on Barry's contract. But there also was some sentiment that the deal also would weaken the team for this season.

On Friday morning, Popovich said he wasn't worried how Barry would respond.

"If he can turn it the right way in his head and make a motivation, it can be a positive," Popovich said. "I think he's going to be fine."

Barry's 20 minutes were his most in almost a month. For the past few weeks, he has had to scrap for time behind Manu Ginobili, Michael Finley and Bruce Bowen. The near trade, he said, made a difficult situation "that much more difficult."

For now, he'll try to stay positive. And stay ready.

"It's obviously been a tough 48 hours, but ... I'm just going to fight," he said. "Anybody who's a professional athlete is a competitor. At this point, that's what it's about for me: competing and trying to take advantage of every opportunity I get."

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You've probably heard that the Spurs were close to acquiring J.R. Smith before last Thursday's trading deadline. Although rebounding has proven to be its biggest weak spot, besides health, San Antonio was actually close to filling multiple voids on what was originally thought to be the deepest team in club history.

The Spurs' trade with New Orleans for the out-of-favor Smith, according to NBA front-office sources, also would have netted Lithuanian sharpshooter Arvydas Macijauskas in exchange for Brent Barry. Smith probably wouldn't have played much right away on such a veteran team, but the 20-year-old would have given San Antonio some sorely needed athleticism at the swing positions. And while Macijauskas has done little but sit as a Hornets rookie -- he seems an especially poor fit on a team without a low-post threat, especially one that runs the Princeton offense -- coaches would probably view him differently if he were coming off the bench for the Spurs and getting the open looks on the perimeter created by Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili.

The deal collapsed, however, when the Hornets' earlier acquisition of Marc Jackson last Thursday consumed more salary-cap space than New Orleans/Oklahoma City anticipated. With 30 minutes to go before the trade buzzer, San Antonio thought it had saved the deal by finding a third team to absorb the contract of second-year Hornets forward Jackson Vroman, but time ran out before the trade could be completed.

But not before Barry was advised by the Spurs that he was about to be dealt . . . and then told to get back on the team's plane to Memphis.

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