Harper Knows What It’s Like

Since moving to Los Angeles in 1984, the Clippers have had only one season above .500.

Current Laker guard Ron Harper played on that 1991-92 Clipper team, which finished 45-37 under then-coach Larry Brown and lost to Houston in five games in the first round of the playoffs.

“My team was pretty good when I played with the Clippers,” Harper said before Monday’s game between the teams. “We had Danny Manning, Charles Smith, Ken Norman and me. . . . With Larry Brown we took them somewhere they haven’t been in a long time since.”

Harper can relate to some of the problems the Clippers are experiencing. When he joined the team in 1989, the Clippers were coming off a 21-61 season.

“They have a long ways to go, but I think they have some ballplayers who any day could be great,” Harper said. “They have some players who can play. They are not as bad as [people] see sometimes.”

Harper said that the players who want to leave the Clippers should look at the whole picture.

“L.A. is a great place to play,” he said. “The grass is not greener on the other side. It’s just they are going through hard times. . . . But there are some towns that have bad teams [that] you’d hate to be in. But living in L.A. is a great place to be.

“They have to understand if they stick together as a basketball team they will improve. But if they all leave ship, it will just go back down the tubes again. We all know if you keep changing teams, that is not good. They need to know they are in an ideal spot in L.A.”

*

If things go as expected this off-season and power forward Maurice Taylor leaves the Clippers as a free agent, then he played his final all-Los Angeles game Monday against the Lakers. And he’s not too choked up about it.

“I haven’t thought about anything in terms of last time this or last time that,” said Taylor, who has experienced only 36 victories in 200 games since he joined the Clippers in 1997. “[Playing the Lakers as a Clipper] is not sentimental to me. If I would have had good memories, it probably would mean something to me.”

*

Eric Piatkowski started at shooting guard for the Clippers in place of Derek Anderson, who missed the team’s morning shoot-around. . . . Center Keith Closs and point guard Troy Hudson did not suit up against the Lakers because of injuries. Closs is still suffering from back spasms; and Hudson, who has an abdominal injury, is expected to be examined today by a team doctor.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

TRIPLE PLAYS / The Big 3

Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Glen Rice have been the driving force behind the Lakers’ success. How they fared:

O’NEAL

*--*

Mon. Season 61 Points 28.2 23 Rebounds 14.3 3 Assists 3.8

*--*

BRYANT

*--*

Mon. Season 22 Points 22.2 1 Rebounds 5.8 5 Assists 4.5

*--*

RICE

*--*

Mon. Season 16 Points 16.2 4 Rebounds 4.0 3 Assists 2.1

*--*

The Top 3

Best records in the NBA:

LAKERS

Record 50-11

Mon. d. Clip., 123-103

Thu. at Golden State

*

PORTLAND

Record 46-13

Mon. l. Toronto, 109-90

Wed. at New Jersey

*

INDIANA

Record 40-19

Sun. d. G.S., 114-95

Tonight. vs. Denver