Rivers Makes His Point in Clipper Victory : Pro basketball: With Grant out with long-term injury, reserve takes over and leads club past Orlando, 113-110.

Between a 126-91 debacle of a loss to Miami Friday night and a 113-110 victory over Orlando Saturday night, a lot of things happened for the Clippers. Sleep wasn’t one of them.

Coach Don Casey didn’t sleep well, mulling the plight of his team--and no doubt his own future--after point guard Gary Grant fractured his ankle against the Heat. David Rivers, knowing he would take Grant’s place in the starting lineup, tossed and turned.

Rivers earned more than 40 winks with his play against the Heat on a day that started with the news that Grant would need surgery and is probably out for the season, and that finished so full of positives.

--In his first start of the season, Rivers had 10 points, nine assists and eight rebounds.

--He also impressed on defense, with five steals.

--Rivers began the night averaging 10.4 minutes a game and had played in only 25 games. But he ran an offense that committed only 12 turnovers, tying the Clipper season low from Nov. 11.

“I wasn’t totally happy with my performance,” Rivers said. “We sort of struggled the last few minutes, but that’s to be expected. We had a new point guard out there directing traffic. It will get better as time goes on.”

Except that no one is sure if Rivers will continue to get the time. General Manager Elgin Baylor said Saturday he expects to have a point guard from the Continental Basketball Assn. signed by Wednesday, in time to play at Washington Thursday in the final game before the all-star break. Baylor wouldn’t say who the Clippers are considering, but Jim Les and Corey Gaines are good bets.

And then there’s the possibility of a trade, which continues to loom as the Feb. 22 deadline nears. Baylor says nothing is imminent, but such names as Danny Ainge of Sacramento and Jeff Malone of Washington continue to circulate.

The general manager makes it policy not to comment on such speculation. However, a Sacramento source confirmed that the teams had discussed a deal that included Ainge for a No. 1 pick and Joe Wolf, but that the Clippers didn’t want to surrender so much for someone they figure will be a reserve by this time next season. Also, the King official cautioned, talks have fallen dormant the last week.

Baylor said Grant’s injury, 17 days after Ron Harper went out with cartilage and ligament damage in his knee, has made it even tougher to make a deal. Other teams figure the Clippers will jump at a deal in hopes of correcting what a month ago was such a promising situation, he said, and are holding out for more than ever.

Rivers said he wouldn’t be surprised if the Clippers made a deal, especially after learning that Grant will miss a minimum of three months after it was determined he will need pins and a plate inserted to help the left ankle heal properly. But Rivers would also like to think Saturday’s showing meant something.

It did to Casey.

“I’m very happy with David Rivers,” the coach said. “He came in with a lot of pressure and ran the team.”

In an effort to make things easier for the new point guards, Rivers and Tom Garrick, the Clippers tinkered with the offense. For the time being, up-tempo has come down. There are more half-court setups, compensating for the loss of Grant, the player they traded for on draft day 1988 specifically to run the fast-break offense.

“We’re going to minimize the push and just do the opportunity break instead of a forced break until we see what Rivers and the others do,” Casey said.

Casey also met with Rivers and Garrick. The emphasis was on control and not trying to do too much.

“He was concerned about controlling the tempo,” said Garrick, who played 16 minutes after having missed the previous five games with tendinitis in his left knee. “He told us to relax the tempo a bit. It worked.”

Staying in a half-court game most of the way, the Clippers (20-25) led at the end of the first quarter, 33-25, and trailed at intermission, 53-52, after being held to 19 points in the second quarter. They took control in the third, using an 18-9 run over the final 5:12 to open an 88-78 gap.

With 8:10 remaining in the game, Orlando (13-32) had cut the deficit to 90-88. Then the Magic went dead again, falling behind an insurmountable seven points with six minutes to play.

The Clippers turned the Magic offense into free throw practice: 11 points from the line, but only two field goals in the final 5:19. When Orlando needed one more in a 113-110 game, a three-point attempt at the buzzer by Otis Smith from the left corner, it hit short.

The Clippers survived. The point guards, interim or otherwise, did better than that.

Clipper Notes

Gary Grant will be operated on Monday by Dr. Tony Daly, the team physician, at Saint John’s Hospital in Santa Monica. . . . Tom Garrick, who had six points, two assists and two rebounds in 16 minutes, on his return: “I didn’t feel real tired. I guess I was so excited to be back.” . . . The Jeff Malone trade rumor: A package from the Clippers that includes one of their two No. 1 draft picks in 1990 and the two second-rounders from 1989, Jeff Martin and Jay Edwards.

Benoit Benjamin had a season-high seven blocked shots, adding 22 points and eight assists, but only five rebounds. . . . Danny Manning and Charles Smith led the Clippers with 23 points each, and Manning also had a team-high 11 rebounds. Sam Vincent had 26 points and 13 assists for Orlando.