Richardson Injures Knee

The hits keep coming for the Clippers.

Quentin Richardson, their standout reserve guard, injured his right knee while running Friday morning at the College of the Desert in Palm Desert. He underwent an MRI exam, which revealed a partial tear of his medial collateral ligament, while teammates completed their practice. He will be forced to stay off his leg for at least the next two weeks, and the timetable for his return is uncertain.

Richardson limped out of the gym, needing help from athletic trainer Jasen Powell to get into a car to drive to a nearby hospital.

The Clippers already are without power forward Elton Brand, who had arthroscopic knee surgery last week, small forward Lamar Odom (sprained ankle) and backup guards Keyon Dooling (ankle) and Bryant Stith (knee).

Cherokee Parks, battling for a reserve forward spot, has been sidelined the last three days because of flu-like symptoms.

Only 13 of the 19 players on the training camp roster were fit to participate in a scrimmage during the evening session Friday.

The Clippers face the Lakers in the first exhibition for each team Tuesday at Bakersfield. The Clippers open the season Oct. 30 against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Staples Center, and it’s possible they could be without three of their top six players.

“With Q, Elton and Lamar out, we’re missing three guys who could be starting for us,” Coach Alvin Gentry said. “Lamar is going to start the season on the injured list. There’s a good chance Elton Brand also will start the season on the injured list. We’ll see about Keyon. Obviously, Bryant Stith is not ready to go either.

“I would prefer to have Q, Elton Brand, Lamar Odom and Keyon Dooling healthy and ready to play. [But] we’ve got good players. We’ve got good depth. We’ve got to make sure our [healthy] guys are playing at a high level.”

Richardson was the Clippers’ first substitute in most games last season and was the team’s third-leading scorer, averaging 13.6 points in 26.6 minutes.

It’s possible that Richardson will move into the starting lineup this season, dropping shooting guard Eric Piatkowski into a reserve role. Gentry liked the jolt of energy the team received whenever Richardson entered games, however. He believed Richardson to be a more effective reserve than Piatkowski.

“I’m open,” Gentry said. “Obviously, Elton and Michael [Olowokandi] and Andre Miller will start. We’ll see if Q can battle for a spot. I don’t worry about who starts. It’s an old coaches’ cliche, but it’s more about who finishes.”

Gentry hoped to see a good deal of such newcomers as guard Marko Jaric, a 2000 draft pick, and forwards Chris Wilcox and Melvin Ely, their top picks in the 2002 draft. Now, Gentry has no choice but to play those three and a number of others extensively during the Clippers’ eight-game exhibition schedule.

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Brand arrived in Southern California on Thursday and the Clippers expected him to travel Friday afternoon to Palm Desert to begin his rehabilitation exercises with the team’s training staff today.

Gentry said he talked with Brand Thursday night. “He said his knee looks great,” Gentry said. “It’s just a time thing. It takes time for it to heal. That’s what we’re looking at.”

Elliott Teaford

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Shaquille O’Neal’s recovery from toe surgery is “textbook perfect” after three weeks, Dr. Robert Mohr said Friday, a little more than three weeks after the procedure.

Mohr cleared O’Neal for rehabilitation work on a Precor machine, which allows O’Neal to run without excessive pounding on his feet. He already had been riding a stationary bike daily.

Mohr, the chief of podiatric surgery at UCLA Medical Center, said O’Neal is “on schedule to be close to being play-ready at the six-week point,” though it remains impossible to predict O’Neal’s return to the Laker lineup.

“We’re very comfortable with where he is,” Mohr said. “He’s moving along textbook perfect. The main thing, however, is we don’t want to lose progress by pushing him too quickly.”

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Commissioner David Stern is expected to make this year’s ring and banner ceremony Oct. 29 at Staples Center. Last year, Stern sent deputy Russ Granik, remaining in New York for Michael Jordan’s first game back with the Washington Wizards. The Wizards open Oct. 30.... The Lakers scrimmaged Thursday night and Friday, and assistant Tex Winter said he thought the newcomers--Kareem Rush and Tracy Murray--were beginning to grasp the offense.

Tim Brown