Hart signs on for the stretch run

Point guard Jason Hart cleared waivers Monday at 3 p.m., signed with the Clippers at 4 and was at Staples Center watching tape with Coach Mike Dunleavy before the ink had dried on his contract.

There’s no time to waste with Hart, the Clippers say, because he could help provide the difference in their bid for a Western Conference playoff berth. With only 22 games remaining, the short-handed Clippers plan to lean heavily on Hart to run their offense, and that’s fine with the team’s newest member.

“I’m coming into a pressure situation. Isn’t that great?” Hart said. “Seriously, they’ve got a good team, so I’ve just have to come in and do my part. I’m going to try to make the game easy for the players so they can score. I’m going to just try to fit in so we can get some victories.”

The Clippers, who currently occupy the eighth and final Western Conference playoff spot, have lost Shaun Livingston for the season because of a potentially career-ending knee injury, and recently have been without fellow point guard Sam Cassell, who has a groin injury.

Unsure about Cassell’s status for the stretch run, they quickly contacted Hart, who had bought out his contract from the Sacramento Kings and was released Thursday.

The Clippers signed Hart for the veteran minimum (about $260,000) for the rest of the season. The Kings are responsible for what he is owed on his $1.6-million salary this season, less the amount of his buyout.

Hart, who played at Inglewood High and Syracuse, makes his off-season home in the Southland and plays pickup games in the summer with the Clippers at the Spectrum Club in El Segundo.

“Jason brings a lot of experience and the leadership that we need with Shaun out,” center Chris Kaman said. “Sam is always a question mark, you just don’t know how it’s going to go with him, especially lately with his groin and his [abdomen].”

To make room for Hart on the roster, the Clippers released point guard Will Conroy, who was recently signed from the development league.

Second-year guard Daniel Ewing has struggled to run the offense while starting in place of Livingston and Cassell, and the plan is for Hart, who has played in 217 NBA games for four teams, to take the reins as soon as he’s comfortable with the offense.

*

Quinton Ross suffered a hip injury with 2:04 left in the third quarter and did not return to the game. The injury occurred when Ross collided with Spurs center Francisco Elson while chasing a loose ball.

jason.reid@latimes.com