COMMENTARY : Latest Move Is Consistent for Donald T.

The Donald rides again.

The Clippers had what might have been their last chance to get a couple of players for Danny Manning, their unrestricted free agent-to-be, but, despite official claims that a Clipper “executive committee” voted it down, it was owner Donald T. Sterling who vetoed it, single-thumbedly.

This is standard operating procedure, right out of the Clipper management manual. Sterling, a courtly and well-meaning man who amassed a great fortune in real estate, is strictly an amateur in basketball although he has always insisted he never tells Clipper officials what to do.

This is true enough. He does tell them a lot of things they can’t do, though.

Thus, in Clipperdom, negotiations are often dragged out endlessly, as they were when Manning was a rookie, earning his undying enmity. Sure-to-leave players (Manning, Charles Smith and Benoit Benjamin) have to be shopped under the gun. Others (Ken Norman) are shopped too late and leave without compensation.

Sterling’s front office is a study in paralysis. Perhaps to avoid the pressure of one strong man pressing Sterling to do things his way, the Clippers will at any one time have a managing troika, circling each other uneasily.

There is a basketball man--Elgin Baylor--who has the titular rank of head of the organization, although Sterling must sign off on his moves.

There is a sort of outside consultant--Harley Frankel until Friday--who might also have Sterling’s ear.

There is a bean-counter--Andy Roeser--who definitely has Donald’s ear.

Although third in command, Roeser reports directly to Sterling and is thus in position to override the direction of his superiors. This is exactly what Manning’s agent, Ron Grinker, said Roeser did last spring when Manning and the Clippers were all but agreed on a five-year, $25-million contract.

This setup, of course, is a recipe for intrigue that bubbles constantly and may have consumed Frankel, an able man whose resignation was announced Friday evening.

The release was a little late, since Frankel’s departure had already been announced earlier in the day by Grinker. He said Harley was fired because of their friendship.

The voluble Grinker presents a unique challenge to the Clippers, because he influences their best player, dislikes Sterling and delights in embarrassing the organization. Deals that don’t happen aren’t unusual and don’t often become public, but Grinker broadcast the details of this one, throwing in the news about Frankel as a bonus.

The Clippers now say openly their only problem with Manning is Grinker, although if they think they’re going to split Danny off from his agent, good luck. Larry Brown tried when Manning was a senior at Kansas, suggesting his own agent, Joe Glass, and ruining his relationship with his star player. Grinker represented Danny’s father, Ed, when he played in the NBA and has known Danny all his life. When Danny was growing up, he called Grinker “Uncle Ron.”

Sterling still dreams of signing Manning, a noble ambition if a longshot. Before the opening of the Clippers’ Irvine camp, Sterling met with Grinker again, but it didn’t go that well.

“They have no chance to sign their star, not now, not tomorrow, never,” Grinker said the next day. “I don’t know what it takes for them to understand that. He’ll be more than comfortable coming back under the circumstances as best he can, but he is never going to sign and play for Donald Sterling’s team.”

Grinker now vows that Manning will entertain no more deals. If he means everything he says, the Clippers are out of luck.

However it turns out, it will mean nothing if the old front-office hijinks continue. Sterling has to put one man in charge, declare him accountable, give him reasonable goals and let him do his stuff. If the man is unsuccessful, as he might well be, Sterling can fire him. At least, Donald will finally know who’s responsible and it won’t be him.

Otherwise, five years from now, they will be going through the same thing with Terry Dehere or whoever their star player is, as he struggles to gain his freedom and join that ex-Clipper pantheon in the sky.