Clippers’ Magic Number Is Now : Pro basketball: They beat Minnesota, 96-93, to win their first playoff berth since moving to West Coast.

Guess who’s coming to dinner?

Not invited for parts of three decades, the Clippers earned a postseason berth Thursday night for the first time since 1975-76, the days of the Buffalo Braves, by beating the Minnesota Timberwolves, 96-93, at the Sports Arena.

After years of waiting, it may take some time to absorb the moment.

“It feels good,” said Gary Grant, in his fourth season with a team that won 21 games in his rookie year. “It’s just hard to pinpoint. It probably won’t sink in until tomorrow.”

Said Coach Larry Brown, part of the organization only 33 games but dispenser of decades worth of understanding: “I would hope they have a real good feeling. I would hope the fans that have endured so much for a number of years take satisfaction. Mr. (Donald) Sterling (the owner) and Elgin (Baylor, the general manager), what they’ve been through. And the players, every single one of them.”

The playoff berth was clinched--probably the No. 7 spot and a first-round date with Utah, though the Clippers have a slight chance to move up--between free throws by Danny Manning with 1:49 remaining. That’s when the final buzzer went off in Sacramento, signaling the Laker loss that nudged the Clippers in.

But the Clippers, unaware of the Laker result, wanted to finish the playoff chase on their own, not with consecutive losses to last-place teams, the Kings and Timberwolves. So they finally got rid of pesky Minnesota by breaking an 83-83 tie with 6:20 to play and getting the deciding points when Doc Rivers’ dunk made it 94-90 with 2:20 remaining.

Fittingly, Ken Norman, the senior Clipper, had the ball as the final seconds ticked off the Sports Arena clock, sending the crowd into a frenzy. Norman’s exclamation point while standing across from his bench was to launch the ball high into the air.

“I got a little weak,” he said. “It was an emotional moment. That’s what we’ve been working since the summer to get. We’ve been working for a shorter off-season.”

Then he joined teammates in a sprint to the locker room, emotions multiplying by the step.

“My eyes were getting watery,” he said, after the locker room had emptied. “But the guys see me as an enforcer, and I couldn’t break down.”

Something was missing early. Maybe atmosphere inside the Sports Arena--no updates of the Lakers’ game at Sacramento were given over the public-address system or scoreboard.

Or maybe it was the play of the Clippers. In fashion reminiscent of Tuesday’s loss to Sacramento, they broke to a big lead early and then fell behind, this time going ahead by 14 in the first quarter and trailing by four at halftime.

The Timberwolves, 14-66 and guaranteed to finish with the league’s worst record, looked like the team playing for the postseason with an 18-0 run in the second quarter. That put them ahead, 49-41. The Clippers went scoreless for a 4:57 span.

Thurl Bailey had six of Minnesota’s points during the charge, but he made his biggest impact on defense. With the Clippers already having been shut out on five consecutive possessions, he blocked shots by Danny Manning on successive trips. After Manning broke the drought by tipping in his own miss with 3:54 left, he tried to move Bailey out of the low post on the next possession and got an offensive foul.

It could have been worse. En route to tying the Clipper record of 29 home victories, set in 1978-79 in San Diego, they were outscored, 31-16, the second quarter despite shooting 47%. They shot 53.1% in the first half, but were behind, 55-51, at halftime and 75-73 at the end of the third period.

The crowd came alive, making the noise of a sold out arena in giving the Clippers a standing ovation as they took the court for the final 12 minutes. It made a difference, and another followed midway through the fourth quarter when the Clippers pulled ahead for good.

“They wanted to see us make the playoffs as much as we did,” Rivers said. “We needed some adrenaline, and they gave it to us.”

Ron Harper helped, too, scoring 19 of his game-high 29 points in the second half. The Clippers were on their way, to the victory and points beyond.

Clipper Notes

Clipper assistant John Hammond, who spent six seasons in the same role at Southwest Missouri State, has been reported to be a possible replacement for longtime friend Charlie Spoonhour, who left the school earlier this week to take over at St. Louis. Hammond indicated he would like to be a head coach, but that speculation about his returning to Southwest Missouri is premature. “I would have some interest if they had some interest,” he said. “But nothing has come up yet, and, to be honest, I don’t really expect anything to. I’ve already heard some big names mentioned, like Pat Foster from Houston University and Benny Dees at the University of Wyoming. Those are guys with impressive credentials.” Hammond is in his second season with the Clippers and, despite comments by Coach Larry Brown that the staff will be evaluated during the off-season, has received indications from the club he will be brought back for 1992-93, on the bench or in another capacity.

News that Jerry Tarkanian had been named coach in San Antonio came as no surprise to Brown, who started the season as the Spurs’ coach. He has talked frequently with Tarkanian since the former Nevada Las Vegas coach started doing Clipper commentary for SportsChannel, and San Antonio owner Red McCombs called Brown Monday for a recommendation. “He’ll be great,” Brown said of Tarkanian. “The guy’s a special coach. It’s great for the league and it’s great for the Spurs.” . . . LeRon Ellis missed the game with a case of flu and a migraine.

* STAYING ALIVE

The Miami Heat, bidding for its first playoff berth, remains half a game out of the eighth and final spot with a 95-87 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Roundup, C7.