Thwarted Again, Clippers Talk to Weiss : Basketball: Hubie Brown will stay with television as commentator instead of returning to the NBA as a coach.

Looking to rebound from yet another setback in their quest for a coach, the Clippers have contacted Bob Weiss again as the search ends its second month.

A source confirmed the Clippers spoke to Weiss on Monday in hopes of finding a replacement for Larry Brown, once and for all. Weiss, entering his first season as an assistant with the Detroit Pistons after spending the previous three years as head coach with the Atlanta Hawks before being fired, declined comment.

The latest twist came as the Clippers unexpectedly lost a second prime candidate. But unlike Lenny Wilkens, who changed his mind to sign with the Hawks as Weiss’ replacement, the weekend switch by Hubie Brown during contract negotiations was so he could stay with TNT as a commentator.

The Clippers were willing to spend as much as approximately $1 million a year for four seasons to lure Brown back to the sidelines after a seven-year absence. But late in the negotiations, they were turned away when, according to reports, TNT owner Ted Turner wouldn’t let Brown out of his contract. A network spokesman could not confirm or deny that, but it is known it was not the Clippers’ decision to break off talks.

Since May 20, the Clippers lost one coach, Larry Brown, and two probable replacements, Wilkens and Hubie Brown. That doesn’t even begin to touch on the player-related disasters with Ken Norman and Danny Manning.

Since May 20, the Hawks hired Wilkens, the Pacers grabbed Larry Brown, the Magic replaced Matt Goukas with Brian Hill, the 76ers made interim coach Fred Carter permanent and the Cavaliers signed Mike Fratello, who would have loved the opportunity to interview with the Clippers.

Worse, twice the Clippers believed they were moving toward filling the coaching vacancy and twice the rug was pulled out. The first time, when the search could have ended quickly, was when Wilkens and team officials seemed to reach accord and planned to start contract talks after the Memorial Day weekend. The Hawks decided not to take the holiday off and signed Wilkens.

Why talks had gotten to such a serious stage with Hubie Brown before Turner spoke up--if that is what happened--is not known. Brown was not taking phone calls and Clipper General Manager Elgin Baylor declined comment. Only the bottom line is for sure: the Clippers had another major setback.

Weiss and Del Harris, probably in that order, remain as candidates. Both have been on the Clippers’ list of possible replacements from the beginning. They are well-liked and well-respected, but both could have been hired a month ago if Baylor and owner Donald T. Sterling were really sold.

On the other hand, going back to Square One don’t seem like much of an option. Baylor’s self-imposed deadline--this past weekend--has already passed, and the last thing the Clippers need from a public relations standpoint is for the search to drag another couple weeks.

Still, there is no hard deadline until training camp in the first week of October. Summer league is continuing with assistant John Hammond running the team.

Weiss, a former San Diego Clipper assistant, historically has favored a wide-open, up-tempo offense the Clippers prefer. He also has been a head coach with the San Antonio Spurs. His replacement there? Larry Brown.

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The Clippers signed free-agent forward Henry James, who averaged 23.3 points with the Wichita Falls Texans in the Continental Basketball Assn.

James, 6 feet 9, also played eight games with the Sacramento Kings and two with the Utah Jazz last season and has played the two previous seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers.