As Key Players Heal, Roster Decisions Await

SAN ANTONIO -- Michael Olowokandi is eligible to come off the injured list when the Clippers play Friday against the San Antonio Spurs. Lamar Odom looks as if he’s ready to play again, although the team says he won’t be activated until Dec. 28, which should be about the time that Corey Maggette is healthy again.

How the Clippers make room for three of their best players has yet to be determined. Rest assured, the team is eager to get them back on the floor.

Olowokandi sat out five games because of tendinitis in his left knee. Odom hasn’t played since Jan. 28 because of wrist and ankle sprains. Maggette underwent arthroscopic knee surgery Nov. 29.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do,” Coach Alvin Gentry said about the anticipated roster juggling when all three players are fit. “We’ve got a couple of days before we have to make a decision.”

The Clippers have several options, although you can rule out an immediate trade, Because of the salary cap and concerns about the luxury tax, trades are difficult to complete.

Most likely, three Clipper reserves will come down with sudden ailments that will force the team to place them on the injured list to make room for Olowokandi, Odom and Maggette.

It’s also possible, although less likely, that Eric Piatkowski will need to go on the injured list Friday because of a strained hip flexor suffered in the first quarter of Tuesday’s game against the Dallas Mavericks. The team’s medical staff will make a decision on Piatkowski’s status after today’s practice.

Teams can carry 12 players on their active roster, with a maximum of three players on the injured list.

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The Clippers did not practice Wednesday in keeping with Gentry’s policy of taking a day off after playing on consecutive nights. The Clippers’ 122-95 loss Tuesday to the Dallas Mavericks came one night after their 94-90 victory at New Orleans.

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Point guard Andre Miller has had a badly sprained left ankle since running into Sacramento’s Bobby Jackson during the Clippers’ loss Nov. 29 to the Kings.

He played only 31 minutes Tuesday against Dallas and later had both ankles soaking in an ice bucket in the locker room.