Anderson Doesn’t Rule Out Playoffs

Shooting guard Derek Anderson has been a Clipper for less than three months but he’s already talking about something the team has done only three times since moving to Los Angeles in 1984.

“I think we can [make the playoffs] but we have to really sneak up--everybody’s going to know we’ll play hard,” Anderson said on a league-sponsored Internet chat Monday.

“In the West, everybody’s going to beat each other up, so [we] just have to win as many home games as we can. We can make the playoffs. We can be one of those last two teams to get in.”

Anderson, acquired in a trade from the Cleveland Cavaliers, said the Clippers will no longer be an easy win for opponents.

“We are going to work this whole year, because I don’t know how long they’ll keep us together,” Anderson said about the Clippers’ youth and future. “We’re all anxious to have fun. We’re all the same age . . . without that bad taste in your mouth from being bounced around the league. This should be the best year, having us all very young on the same team.”

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Thanks to the addition of Lamar Odom and Anderson, center Michael Olowokandi will have more time to develop his offensive game this season.

As a rookie, Olowokandi’s post moves were inconsistent last season as he tried to perfect a jump hook, Coach Chris Ford’s favorite move. This season, Olowokandi makes the jump hook smoothly.

“He’s not hesitating,” Ford said. “He’s getting it and making a move. Hopefully, he’ll continue . . . it’s an awesome shot.”

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Eric Piatkowski, who sat out Sunday’s game against Seattle because of a minor rib injury, and Anderson, who sat out the second half because of back spasms, both practiced Monday. . . . The Clippers will play the first NBA game in Staples Center on Wednesday when they host the Milwaukee Bucks.