Young Newcomers Make for Giddy Start

It was all fun and games for the Clippers on Monday when the team held media day at Southwest L.A. College.

Darius Miles took over as a television reporter and interviewed fellow rookies Quentin Richardson and Keyon Dooling, while second-year swingman Corey Maggette gave his best pose with a basketball for a team picture.

Coach Alvin Gentry noticed his players enjoying themselves and didn’t try to stop them. Gentry knows the real NBA season starts today when the team opens training camp at College of the Desert.

“They don’t realize it, but [this morning] everyone is going to run a mile the first thing before practice even starts,” said Gentry, who starts his first season as coach after replacing interim coach Jim Todd.

One thing for sure, the Clippers are young. Five will still be 20 or younger when the regular-season opens at Utah on Oct. 31.

“We really are a young team, but I think that is the good news,” Gentry said. “We know that we are not going to all of a sudden be playing for the NBA championship.

“Look at Darius Miles. He can play in this league for eight years and will only be 26 years old. Which is really the peak of an NBA player’s career. . . . And, then understand we have four other guys who are only two years older than he is.”

After spending most of the summer getting used to being a part of the new-look Clippers, the rookies and Maggette are ready to get serious.

“It’s cool now, but I know it will hit home when we really start running,” Richardson said. “The key is going to be for us to improve every day as a team and continue to get better.”

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Media day for the Clippers last season was overshadowed by Maurice Taylor’s announcement that he would play out his contract and leave the team as a free agent.

Taylor’s statement set the tone for the Clippers’ 15-67 season. Elgin Baylor, vice president of basketball operations, was glad the Clippers did not have any problem like that Monday.

“It is always good not to have to worry about off-the-court stuff,” Baylor said. “We can just concentrate on basketball.”

Because of the Clippers’ inexperience, Baylor’s expectations are more realistic than hopeful. He believes the Clippers are much more talented than last season, but he also knows it will be a challenge to reach the playoffs.

“You always want to make the playoffs and do whatever you can to get there,” Baylor said. “But we want to see the development of these players. Each time we play, you want to expect them to get better.

“We’re waiting with great anticipation to see the players perform . . . Yes, we are young, but there is no substitute for talent. We feel that the organization has a great future with the talented players we have.”

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Second-round pick Marko Juric is not with the team because he is playing professionally in Europe. . . . Shooting guard Eric Piatkowski, who had minor knee surgery last week, said he expects to be back before the start of the season.