Cassell willing but is he able?

OAKLAND -- He’ll blow 38 candles out on his birthday cake next month. He suffered through aches and pains all last season. He has won championships and has little left to prove in the NBA.

Still, Sam Cassell, the Clippers’ enigmatic court leader, would like to announce he’s back. And not only for this year either. Be it with the Clippers or another NBA franchise.

Cassell, beginning his 15th season, is in the final year of a two-year, $13-million contract. He played in only 58 games last season and became basketball’s version of a pinch-hitter toward the end of it, informing Coach Mike Dunleavy whether he could play mere moments before tipoffs.

Take it away, Sam:

“It was tough last year,” Cassell said. “You see some of the guys struggling and I know how to get all these guys their shots and how to get them to play at a higher level.”

“But I feel a lot better this year. A little bruised in the knee. But my back is fine. My abdominal muscle is fine. Everything else is fine.

“I’m definitely coming back next year. I don’t want to be a starter, though. Maybe come off the bench and play 20 or 25 minutes. If the Clippers would welcome me back, I would have no problems here.”

Cassell has long envisioned coaching after his career ends and said he also wouldn’t mind playing a final season for a franchise where an assistant’s job would be waiting afterward.

He scored 16 points in the first quarter of the Clippers’ second exhibition against the Trail Blazers, and Portland Coach Nate McMillan pulled him aside, telling him he’d “better not retire because there’s still a lot of gas left in that tank.”

Dunleavy still called Cassell’s durability a question mark.

“As Sam gets older, you never know how much he can give you,” he said. “But so far, he’s looked good.”

Trainer Jasen Powell said the team would closely monitor Cassell and work on his flexibility throughout the season to alleviate abdominal pain.

“It all depends on how many minutes he plays and the wear and tear he takes,” Powell said. “We also have to be sensitive to his age factor in terms of how fast he can recover after games.”

Dunleavy has liked how all three point guards are playing, but once again, the Clippers probably will go as far as Cassell carries them.

And he wouldn’t have it any other way.

“I’ve always been a basketball fanatic,” he said. “Most people wouldn’t want to take the last shot, but I want to. For me, it’s easier to take a shot in the fourth quarter than it is in the first.”

The Clippers beat the Golden State Warriors, 99-89, at Oracle Arena on Sunday for their first exhibition victory. Cassell, Corey Maggette, Josh Powell, Quinton Ross and Chris Kaman started. Al Thornton made his first eight shots and finished with a game-high 24 points. Maggette added 18 points and 14 rebounds.

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jonathan.abrams@latimes.com