Mike Bibby took the detour to the visitors' locker room before his latest visit, stopping to chat with security guards, with Kings staffers, with a few of his old coaches and ex-teammates.

He feels healthy.

He looks great.

With his hair considerably longer, the dark curls kept in place by his familiar headband, the former Kings point guard appears to have shaved off a few of his 31 years.

"I can still go out and play big minutes," Bibby said before his Atlanta Hawks beat the Kings 113-105 Wednesday night at Arco Arena. "I prepare for that. What I try to do is lead the team, make sure everybody gets their touches. I'm not going to complain about how many shots I get, things like that. I'm all about winning. I learned that from Vlade (Divac), Doug (Christie), Peja (Stojakovic). Scoring a lot of points on a bad team doesn't mean anything."

Bibby was spoiled. He admits it. The ball movement on the memorable Sacramento team earlier this decade was a once-in-a-career experience. Run to the spot. Turn your head. Open your hands, and there it was, the ball delivered perfectly, precisely, by any number of players. It might have been Divac with a one-bounce feed from the post, Christie with look-away toss as he penetrated the lane, Chris Webber or Bobby Jackson lasers from the wings.

"You won't see teams passing like that," said Bibby, who scored 13 points in 34 minutes of action Wednesday. "That was special."

In his second full season with the Hawks, Bibby, who signed a new three-year, $18 million contract during the offseason, is the calming influence on one of the league's younger, more athletic rosters. He shares a backcourt with high-scoring Joe Johnson, and occasionally, with the much-traveled Jamal Crawford.

Because of his age and Crawford's presence, Bibby's role continues to evolve. The plan is for him to play 35 minutes some nights, 27 or 28 on others. "We're a little deeper," noted coach Mike Woodson, an original Sacramento King. "We really had to ride him (Bibby) a lot the last two years. He still anchors us, but we don't have to ride him so hard this year."

After being greeted with a rousing ovation during introductions, Bibby was up to his old tricks. He straightened his headband. He adjusted his wristband. He tugged at the protective wraps on both calves. Then he went onto the court and reintroduced himself.

He scooted along the left baseline and scored on a reverse, stroked a jumper from the wing, lobbed a pass that Josh Smith slammed through the basket. The best of Bibby, though, would occur later, once before intermission, when he sank a deep, high-arching three from the left side, and again, with just over nine minutes left in a tight contest.

The later highlight was nothing new, nothing Bibby hasn't done a zillion times in this building.

Just over nine minutes remained. The Hawks trailed 92-90. After Josh Smith missed a free throw, the rebound was tossed to Bibby, all alone beyond the left arc. He lined up the shot, squared his shoulders, and released a three-pointer that put Atlanta ahead for the duration.

"The thing about Mike," said Hawks television analyst and Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins, "is that he still makes the big shots. He's done it for us since he got to Atlanta. Plus, he takes pressure off Joe (Johnson) and Jamal (Crawford) because he is such a good ballhandler and runs the team."

His assists numbers (4.5) aren't extraordinary, but as he says: "We move the ball around, so they're never going to be great. I don't even worry about that. I just want to win."

Call The Bee's Ailene Voisin, (916) 321-1208.