You see it more in boxing, older heavyweights trying to regain the championship form they once possessed, going into the ring and not realizing that age has taken its toll in virtually every aspect, from hand quickness to foot speed to reflexes.

	Patrick Ewing's numbers are down, and the Sonics may not want him next season.

Larry Holmes, George Foreman, Leon Spinks, even the greatest one of all, Muhammad Ali, trying to make a heroic comeback only to, in the end, make an embarrassing display that ultimately makes one wonder what happened to some athletes' senses of reality.

It reminds me of this Saturday's heavyweight fight -- or, perhaps, at this point it should be called a tussle -- between Seattle Sonics center Patrick Ewing and Houston Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon, two guys who used to be the greatest in the world who now look paunchy and punchdrunk.

Think about what this used to mean. Two of the greatest centers of all-time, going at it, different methods but, invariably, the same results.

The Dream, with all his dazzling moves and fancy Fred Astaire footwork, going at Ewing, who could knock down jump shots or power to the middle, not quite the antithesis of Olajuwon's grace, but not too far from it.

How about their seven-game series in the 1993-94 NBA championship, won by the Rockets, when Dream led his team in scoring each and every game, going for 28, 25, 21, 32, 27, 30 and 25.

That was Dream at his best, unstoppable, really, with his head fakes, his ball fakes, his hip shimmies, his up-and-unders. You thought he was traveling because he was doing so many different things, but then you realized he was as skilled as Mikhail Baryshnikov.

And Ewing, always a warrior, leading his team in rebounding four times, in scoring twice, setting an NBA Finals record with 30 blocked shots, competing on a knee that needed to be surgically repaired after John Starks' 2-for-18 robbed him of a chance at a title.

Seven years later, and both are still on the court, although, sadly, neither is even close to as effective as they once were.

Even beyond Ewing's stats -- he is averaging a career-low 9.5 points in a career-low 28.9 minutes a game, shooting a career-low 40 percent -- Ewing's mobility has left him altogether.

	Dropping Off
	Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon have been two of the most dominant centers in the NBA througout their careers. Both began their careers by averaging 20 or more points for 13 consecutive seasons, and both averaged 10 or more rebounds in at least nine diferent seasons. But each has fallen off in recent years, dropping well below their career averages for points and rebounds. Here's how their last three seasons compare to their career averages.
	Ewing career avg.	22.8 ppg, 10.4 rpg
	1997-98	20.8 ppg, 10.2 rpg
	1998-99	17.3 ppg, 9.9 rpg
	1999-00	15.0 ppg, 9.7 ppg
	2000-01	9.5 ppg, 8.0 rpg
	Olajuwon career avg.	23.1 ppg, 11.6 rpg
	1997-98	16.4 ppg, 9.8 rpg
	1998-99	18.9 ppg, 9.6 rpg
	1999-00	10.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg
	2000-01	9.6 ppg, 5.8 rpg

He struggles with lateral movement so badly that Danny Fortson blows by him -- and that is after Fortson's surgery. Ewing no longer has his move to the middle because he has no lift, and his jump shot has been woefully off the mark.

Olajuwon, meanwhile, is being bypassed by his own team, with youngsters Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley eschewing the post play for up-and-down and all around, and Olajuwon voicing his displeasure over being taken out of the offense.

"There's a lot of excuses about maybe I'm old, but that's not true," Olajuwon said. "I'm fit. I'm healthy. The other teams know that because they double- and triple-team me when I get the ball. I'm enjoying this style, but you can't go away from the post completely. That's not winning basketball."

Now I'm not saying that Ewing and Olajuwon should not be in the league this season. They both have contracts that run through the end of this year, and they both are making mounds of dough. Ewing makes $14 million and Olajuwon makes $16.5 million.

But what is sad is that both are talking about coming back next season, and maybe beyond that.

After Olajuwon complained about not getting enough touches, he issued a sort of threat.

"If you don't use (my post game) this year, then that's motivation for next year to get someone (else) to use it," Olajuwon said.

And Ewing has said repeatedly that he wants to play for two more seasons, to the age of 40, which was part of the reason the Knicks traded him to Seattle.

There should be a rule instituted by commissioner David Stern that if some of the greatest players of all-time, future Hall of Famers, are unable to see they can't play any longer, somebody has to tell them they have to retire.

I don't want my final memories of such tremendous players to be them leaving the ring with bloodied noses.

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