Shooting Struggles Continue

If you’re Clipper Coach Chris Ford, what do you do when your shooting guards can’t shoot? Turn to Charles Jones?

Jones, a former two-time NCAA scoring champion at Long Island, has remained on the bench except for some late playing time in a loss to Seattle last week, while Ford has stuck with cold-shooting Eric Piatkowski and Tyrone Nesby.

In an effort to get more offense out of them, Ford even moved starting shooting guard Derek Anderson to point guard for the last two games. It hasn’t worked.

“We’re having [Anderson] do some things he can do well for stretches, but to ask him to run the point for as many minutes as we have has taken away from his game,” said Ford, who has also lost some faith in streaky Troy Hudson and Eric Murdock, who is still bothered by tendinitis in his right knee.

Through the Clippers’ seven-game losing streak, Piatkowski has made 11 of 49 shots from the field for 22%, Nesby 26 of 81 for 32%.

“I need some help here,” Ford said. “It’s tough to turn your shoulder on those guys because during the off-season, the Clippers extended them long-term contracts feeling that they will be big parts to this team. Right now they are not producing. I don’t know if it’s time to go to Charles or someone like that. We have a lot invested in Pike and Nez.”

TONIGHT

at Detroit, 5 PST, Ch. 9

* Site--Palace at Auburn Hills.

* Radio--KXTA (1150).

* Records--Clippers 4-14, Pistons 9-10.

* Record vs. Pistons (1999)--Did not play.

* Update--Detroit’s leading scorer, Grant Hill, has been nursing a sprained right ankle but is expected to play. The Clippers have lost six consecutive games to the Pistons and have not won at Detroit since March 15, 1995.