Clippers make it two in a row with 98-94 victory over Bobcats

A new draft pick will join the Clippers this summer, probably of the bouncing-ball variety. The team also hopes to add a healthy Blake Griffin and, if its sales pitch hits the mark, a prime free agent.

Until then, the trio of reinforcements who arrived Monday night at Staples Center will have to do.

Baron Davis returned from a sore lower back and Drew Gooden and Travis Outlaw made their Clippers debuts a success during a 98-94 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats.

Clippers center Chris Kaman made two free throws with 1 minute 38 seconds left to break an 89-89 tie and, after Charlotte’s Raymond Felton missed a three-point attempt, Eric Gordon made an off-balance runner in the lane to give the Clippers a four-point cushion.

The Clippers made five of eight free throws in the final 26 seconds, including one of two by Steve Blake that sealed a second consecutive victory for a team that had lost its six previous games.

“Two wins in a row is good for now,” said Kaman, who had 18 points and 13 rebounds.

Davis had 10 points and 10 assists after sitting out two games, helping the Clippers earn their first winning streak since they beat New Jersey and Chicago toward the end of last month. It was also their first victory over Charlotte since March 16, 2007, snapping a four-game losing streak.

Forward Rasual Butler scored 20 points, leading six players in double digits for the Clippers, who also got a big lift from their two newcomers.

Outlaw, playing in his first game since suffering a stress fracture in his left foot Nov. 14, scored 10 points on four-for-six shooting.

Gooden provided some much-needed energy off the bench. Acquired last week as part of a three-team trade, the power forward had 10 points and nine rebounds in 27 minutes.

“This is basketball,” Gooden said. “It’s a different team, same game.”

Gerald Wallace had 32 points for Charlotte, which capitalized on seven third-quarter turnovers by the Clippers to transform a three-point deficit into a three-point lead. But the Clippers rallied in the fourth quarter, tying the score at 87-87 on a three-pointer by Butler.

“I was happy we showed verve and determination down the stretch,” Clippers interim Coach Kim Hughes said.

Hughes called having a full complement of players a “shocking” development, though he cautioned it might take a while to develop chemistry with a group that includes three players recently acquired in trades. But the pluses clearly outweighed the negatives.

Etc.

Hughes said DeAndre Jordan got the start at power forward Monday based on the way he challenged shots during the Clippers’ victory over Sacramento on Saturday and his ability to guard Charlotte big man Boris Diaw.

Starting Jordan alongside Kaman had been problematic for the Clippers in the first three games since the team traded 6-foot-11 Marcus Camby because it meant bringing in too small a lineup off the bench. But the availability of the 6-10 Gooden alleviated that dilemma.

ben.bolch@latimes.com