Clippers’ Coach Chaney Wants to Cut Benjamin Down to Size

Coach Don Chaney strongly criticized center Benoit Benjamin for being overweight and out of shape after the Clippers opened their exhibition season with a 125-112 win over Athletes in Action Tuesday at Cal Poly Pomona.

Benjamin, a 7-footer who was matched against 6-11 center Swen Nater, had 15 points, hitting 2 of 4 shots and 11 of 14 free throws, 10 rebounds and blocked 2 shots, but Chaney was not satisfied.

“I thought he didn’t play well at all,” Chaney said. “He couldn’t move. He’s very weak, (especially) in the lower body. If he were to go up against an NBA center, he would have been totally wiped out. He should have had 18 to 20 rebounds and a million points and a lot more blocked shots.

“He’s not going to play up to par until he gets his weight down, and I guarantee you that’s going to happen because I’m taking steps to see that it does. We’re going to put him on a diet and there are going to be some fines levied unless he gets his weight down.”

Benjamin, who last Friday reported to training camp at 272 pounds--26 pounds over his weight at the end of last season--has lost two pounds since then.

“I went on a three-week cruise to the Bahamas in July,” Benjamin said. “I wasn’t concerned with working out, not on the cruise.

“And I went up to see some of my relatives in Oakland just before camp opened. They were feeding me like crazy. I probably gained 10 to 15 pounds in that one week. I ate whatever they cooked. But I didn’t know I’d put on that much weight.”

Guard Lancaster Gordon led the Clippers with 19 points. Mike Woodson added 17.