Simmons Making Himself Valuable

It’s apparent in the way he carries himself: Bobby Simmons knows that he belongs, know that there’s a place for him in the NBA, knows that the Clippers value his contributions.

Cast adrift by the Washington Wizards in the summer of 2003, Simmons showed up at Clipper training camp last fall a virtual unknown.

This year, after establishing himself as the team’s most reliable and redoubtable reserve last season, he is firmly ensconced as the sixth man and, depending on the availability of Kerry Kittles, could open the season as a starter.

“Bobby Simmons is looking very, very confident,” Elton Brand said of his versatile teammate, a 6-foot-6 swingman who averaged 7.8 points and 4.7 rebounds last season. “He’s hitting his open shots, playing tough defense.

“I don’t know how Coach [Mike Dunleavy] is going to use him, but I know Coach is going to use him because he’s playing really well.”

Due to become an unrestricted free agent next summer, Simmons, 24, said he feels “100% better” this fall, and not just because he knows his role. Through exercise and a strict diet that mostly limited him to protein-rich foods such as fish, meats and egg whites while steering him away from carbohydrates -- “I called it the no-no-no diet,” he said -- he spent the off-season trimming body fat.

Though he couldn’t resist home-cooked desserts -- “stuff that Grandma cooks all the time” -- Simmons said he’s stronger and, he hopes, more durable. A sprained left hip landed him on the injured list for a month last season, his absence from the lineup coinciding with the Clippers’ falling out of the playoff race before March 1.

“I think that I’m going to have a good season,” he said. “I don’t know what Mike has in store for me, but fortunately I know that the minutes will be there and I will be out on the floor.”

A year ago, he could only hope.

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Brand will sit out tonight’s exhibition against the Golden State Warriors at Staples Center because of soreness in his left knee. “It’s normal wear and tear,” said Brand, who had surgery on the knee in the off-season. “It’s just them being cautious before the season starts.” ... Corey Maggette is not expected to play tonight and Marko Jaric was listed as questionable, though both played in Monday’s intrasquad scrimmage at Staples Center. Backup center Zeljko Rebraca will be available after sitting out the first two exhibitions because of a strained right quadriceps.