If the Clippers don’t make a move...

If the Clippers don’t make a move before the NBA trade deadline, it won’t be because they didn’t try. After practice Monday in Carson, Coach Chris Ford and Elgin Baylor, vice president for basketball operations, had a conference call with owner Donald Sterling to discuss possible changes to improve the team.

With Lamond Murray, Rodney Rogers, Lorenzen Wright and Eric Piatkowski in the final years of their contracts and the Clippers at 0-15, Ford got a chance to voice his opinion about what direction the franchise needs to go.

“I feel better that I told them and now we’re going to see what we can do,” Ford said. “[Baylor] agreed with some of the things I said and now we have to see how we can deal with these things.”

Baylor said that he’s optimistic about working a deal but he’s leery of teams trying to take advantage of the Clippers’ situation.

Other than second-year forward Maurice Taylor and rookie center Michael Olowokandi, there are no players the team will not discuss in a trade.

*

Olowokandi, on the injured list because of a sprained ankle, practiced Monday and Ford is hoping that he’ll be ready to return to the lineup for Wednesday’s game against the Lakers, the first game he’s eligible to be activated.

TONIGHT Lakers at Clippers 7:30, Channel 9

* Site--Sports Arena.

* Radio--KXTA (1150), KLAC (570).

* Records--Lakers 13-6; Clippers 0-15.

* Record in series--Lakers 2-0.

* Update--The Lakers have won seven in a row and have a seven-game winning streak against the Clippers, including back-to-back wins two weeks ago. The Clippers last defeated their cross-town rivals March 12, 1998.

* Tickets: (213) 480-3232.