Human Highlight Film has become the Human Freeze Frame

Human Highlight Film has become the Human Freeze Frame

February 2, 1995

This is no way to finish a brilliant career. Dominique Wilkins should still be in Atlanta, closing out his Hall of Fame run as a lovable legend-in-residence. There he would be permitted to shut it down with dignity, helping the young Hawks and maybe lighting the Olympic torch in the summer of 1996.

Instead, he is here in cold Boston, where he is frozen in time, frozen in our minds, forever expected to be the young gun who matched Larry Bird basket for basket in the spring of 1988.

Wilkins didn't start again last night. Boston's $ 2.8 million cocaptain was on the pine when the Celtics lineup was introduced before the 100-93 loss to the Charlotte Hornets. Here in the Hub, the Human Highlight Film has become the Human Freeze Frame, wearing warmups when Rick Fox and Greg Minor come out with the starters.

He scored 10 last night in 29 minutes but missed all five of his second-half shots and failed to score a point in the final 16 minutes when the Celts mounted a comeback.

This is the way it is now. In the winter of 1995, Wilkins is a 35-year-old, 41 percent jump shooter who plays Cigar Store Indian Defense and does almost nothing to help the other players on the floor. The explosive first step is gone. The acrobatic stuff is gone. If the NBA kept a plus-minus, 'Nique would not want to go near a stat sheet. And now he is a sub.

Wilkins has 2 1/2 years left on his $ 10.9 million contract, and the Celtics have no way out. It is a signing that makes M.L. Carr look Gormanesque.

What about it, M.L.? Are you worried about Wilkins becoming your Jack Clark? Are you worried about becoming M.L. Gorman?

"No," said Carr. "And the reason I'm not is because I think we've got a guy who's making an adjustment. So I'm more inclined to say, 'Let's make these adjustments. Whatever they are.' Are we measuring Dominique against what he used to be, or what he should be? We're not asking him to be what he was. We need a guy who can give us some points, or at least create an opportunity for his teammates. Has he done those things to the level that we expect? Not yet, but that's what we're asking."

These are words of total denial. All the Celtics are in denial when they talk about Dominique. Nobody wants to be the one to tell nice guy Dominique that he's lost his fastball.

After last night's game, Wilkins said, "You go through bad stretches where everything goes wrong. But it hasn't been all year. I'm going to break out of this. I have no doubts."

It would be wonderful if we could believe this. But you don't have to be Bill Walton or Peter Vecsey to see that Wilkins' skills have diminished to a point where he is more liability than asset. He'll run the table for 30 now and then, but it's like watching Wade Boggs hit four lame singles in a 7-4 loss to the Indians.

Chris Ford keeps saying that this new lineup is not forever. It's a pickle for the coach-under-siege. The coach and the former All-Star exchange little dialogue and seem to have trouble making eye contact.

There are no marching orders to play Wilkins, but Dad and Thanksdad Gaston can't be too happy to be paying almost 11 million bucks over three years for a calcified 'Nique.

When Ford was asked to characterize Wilkins' play last night, the coach said, "It was OK. He had some miscues out there four turnovers but he had some moments. I don't want to get into critiquing Dominique after every game. He's one of my 12 players, and that's how I'm going to treat him."

Wilkins came in with 4:35 left in the first quarter. Celtic fans gave him a verbal pat on the back. There was polite applause. All they were saying was "give 'Nique a chance."

"That made me feel good," said Wilkins. "I got going pretty good and made things happen."

Wilkins scored 10 points in 13 minutes of the first half but turned the ball over three times and missed a pair of free throws. The Celts trailed by 1 when he reported to the table and by 11 when he came off with 3:44 left in the half.

Wilkins did not start the second half, and when Ford went to the bench for the first forward sub, he turned to Xavier McDaniel. Dominique came in with 3:38 left in the third. The Celts trailed by 10. He had a chance to cut the Charlotte lead to 4 with 2:45 left but couldn't finish. When he rebounded his own miss, he was stripped by Scott Burrell.

It has been a rough eight days for Wilkins. Last Wednesday he experienced what he thought was the worst night of his career when he made only one of nine shots in the historic home loss to the Clippers. Then came Black Friday when he did not start and played only six minutes against the Warriors.

None of this had ever happened before. Since the autumn of 1982, when he burst onto the NBA landscape, Wilkins has been a player you'd pay to see. That's what Celtic fans thought they were getting. He is not that player anymore, and it's nobody's fault.

Wilkins continues to insist that what we are seeing is a slump. It looks like more than that. And watching 2 1/2 more years of this is not a happy prospect for M.L. Gorman and the rest of the Celtic brass.