Vandeweghe and Brown Together Again : Clippers: The 12-year veteran decides to play for the NBA minimum to be reunited with his former coach at UCLA.

Linked for parts of three decades, by friendship as well as basketball, Larry Brown and Kiki Vandeweghe are reunited.

They first hooked up during the 1979-80 season at UCLA, Brown’s first at the school and Vandeweghe’s last, the year the Bruins finished fourth in the Pacific 10 Conference but reached the NCAA final before losing to Louisville.

When Vandeweghe was drafted in the first round by the Dallas Mavericks but did not sign, Brown called his friend in Denver, Coach Doug Moe, and urged the Nuggets to trade for Vandeweghe. They did.

Vandeweghe and Brown stayed in touch through the years, as player Vandeweghe went from Denver to Portland to New York and Coach Brown went from the New Jersey Nets to the Kansas Jayhawks to the San Antonio Spurs to the Clippers. Brown maintained interest in working with Vandeweghe again but nothing could be worked out.

Then late Sunday night, Brown and the Clippers signed free agent Vandeweghe to a one-year contract for $140,000. Vandeweghe said other NBA teams were interested and European clubs were willing to toss around lira and francs, but he took the deal for the league minimum for two basic reasons: Larry Brown and location.

“Coming to Los Angeles was important,” said Vandeweghe, from Palisades High. “But also, Coach Brown. That was extremely important. If I had to pick one thing as to why I signed with the Clippers, that was it.

“I have always played basketball for the enjoyment of it,” Vandeweghe said. “Coach Brown and the team are on an upswing. Obviously, having lived in L.A., that makes it a lot better. I could have gone to a number of other places and made more money. But that is not the biggest factor in my decisions.”

How much Vandeweghe plays will be one of the interesting aspects on a team with subplots by the dozen, especially considering Brown’s constant praise of Ken Norman, the starter at small forward. Vandeweghe, at 34 a 12-year veteran, does have two crucial factors on his side. He might be the team’s best outside shooter, which is what the Clippers need, and after four seasons with Moe in Denver, he can run the passing-game offense blindfolded.

In a crucial season on the court because so many changes were made after a successful 1991-92, the Clippers are also facing a critical nine months behind the scenes because five prominent players, four of them starters, may be in their final contract years:

--Norman. Although he says he wants to stay with the Clippers, the sixth-year forward will be an unrestricted free agent July 1.

There had been talks about an extension for about the last month, but discussions stalled when Norman and agent David Falk wanted to go five years and the Clippers stopped at four. Now, Norman will buy an insurance policy to protect against injury and says he won’t negotiate again until the end of the season, unless he thinks the talks are more than cursory.

--Danny Manning. The plan remains the same: No negotiating, become a restricted free agent July 1, immediately take the one-year qualifying offer at a 25% raise and then become an unrestricted free agent after 1993-94, at which time the Clippers won’t be able to keep him simply by matching an offer sheet.

--Ron Harper. The Clippers hold an option for next season, so they have plenty of security and no reason to panic.

--Mark Jackson. New to town after being acquired from New York, he has no immediate desire to leave after becoming a restricted free agent.

--Gary Grant. He arrived at camp in great shape and is now the backup shooting guard as well as the backup point guard. Whether the Clippers match any contract he gets as a restricted free agent depends on his play, the amount of an offer sheet and the development of rookie Randy Woods.

Clipper Notes

John Williams weighed in at about 310 pounds when he took his physical Friday. That’s 50 pounds more than was preferred by the Washington Bullets, his former team, and the same range the Clippers will be shooting for. The Clippers say they will be patient with Williams and overweight center Stanley Roberts, figuring that embarrassing showings will discourage progress. Brown said he will probably let each decide when he is ready for his first exhibition appearance. . . . Tests taken just before the opening of camp showed that Ron Harper’s right knee, which underwent reconstructive surgery in January of 1990, is as strong as his left. . . . Skeeter Henry left camp to play in France.