Clippers’ Roberts Sidelined for Season : Pro basketball: Center ruptures left Achilles’ tendon. He ruptured the right Achilles’ last season.

Clipper center Stanley Roberts, who played only 14 games last season before rupturing his right Achilles’ tendon on Dec. 4, will sit out the upcoming NBA season after rupturing his left Achilles’ tendon in the fourth quarter of a 101-98 exhibition victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night before an announced crowd of 5,211 at the Sports Arena.

Roberts will undergo surgery Friday at Daniel Freeman Marina Hospital and is expected to be sidelined nine to 12 months, said Gene Osher, who will perform the surgery.

“It’s unusual (to have ruptured both Achilles’ tendons in such a short span of time), but this was the type of circumstance where it would be less unusual--big man, small tendon, working hard,” Osher said.

Roberts ballooned to more than 345 pounds last summer while recuperating from surgery last December and reported to camp overweight and out of shape. After working out three times a day with a personal trainer, he practiced with the team only three times before leaving for a traffic-court appearance in Raleigh, N.C., on Tuesday.

Did Roberts’ weight contribute to the injury?

“That’s part of the problem,” Osher said. “He had a built-up shoe (for his right foot) and he was progressing very nicely. The shoe was designed to take some of the pressure off the Achilles’ on both sides. He has a relatively small tendon for a man his size.

“This is a season injury. By the time he recovers from this and gets back in shape, I really strongly doubt whether he’ll play this year.”

Roberts was chasing his own missed free throw when his left leg buckled underneath him. He collapsed to the court, rolling in agony.

Trainer Keith Jones and Osher rushed out to examine him. He was wheeled off the court on a stretcher by Clipper centers Elmore Spencer and Bob Martin.

Playing in his first game since last season’s injury, Roberts had 13 points and two rebounds in 13 minutes.

“The biggest problem we had with him the last week was keeping him from killing me because he wanted to play,” Coach Bill Fitch said. “He was doing all the right things; he just got a bad break.”

Said forward Eric Piatkowski: “Everybody is down and out about Stanley’s injury. “Stanley shot the free throw so quickly and when he pushed off, his foot gave out and you could tell he was in pain.”