Clippers Deny Draft Deal for Russian

The Clippers on Monday dismissed speculation that they have a deal in place to make a Russian teenager the 12th pick in next week’s NBA draft.

News outlets have reported that the Clippers are committed to taking Yaroslav Korolev, a 6-foot-9 small forward who turned 18 last month, if he is available when they make their first pick in the June 28 selection process.

“Of course we’re not going to commit; we’re not going to mention anything,” Clipper Coach Mike Dunleavy said.

“We commit to everybody in the draft, and whoever we get, we get.”

Korolev’s agent, Marc Fleisher, also denied the reports on the eve of today’s deadline for early entrants to withdraw from the draft.

“If I had a deal with a player, I would never comment on it, publicly or privately,” he said.

“All I can tell you is, he is going to keep his name in the draft....The Clippers are a team that had expressed interest to me, as had probably a dozen other teams. That’s about all I can say.”

Korolev, whose father, Igor, coaches the Russian national junior team, is regarded as the top young prospect in his homeland.

“I probably would have waited another year to put him in the draft initially, but the response was so good from NBA teams [that] they really made the decision for us,” Fleisher said.

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Dunleavy, confirming months of speculation, said the Clippers were “probably 95%” certain that they would not try to re-sign Kerry Kittles.

Kittles, acquired in July in a trade with the New Jersey Nets, played in only 11 games for the Clippers because of injuries, sitting out the last half of the 2004-05 season because of a degenerative disk in his lower back.

The veteran shooting guard, who will be an unrestricted free agent July 1, said that his condition had not improved since the regular season ended and that back surgery was being considered, though “I’m trying to avoid that.”

He said he’d still like to play.

“I know that if I was healthy,” he said, “I could get back into shape in two or three months and help any team in this league.”