Point guard Sam Cassell considers himself to be an astute judge of basketball talent, and few young players have impressed Cassell as much as third-year point guard Shaun Livingston.
Cassell is not among the team’s observers disappointed in Livingston’s start this season, saying Livingston’s critics expect too much. The Clippers’ future could be bright because Livingston has star potential, Cassell said.
“Shaun is just being Shaun,” the 13-year veteran said. “I think you guys, reporters, and the fans have such high expectations for him. People seem to think he should have an 18-point, 10-assist, 10-rebound, three-steals, two-block night every night. That’s not the way it is in this league.
“Believe me, it just doesn’t work that way. It’s not going to happen for you every night. Yeah, sometimes I expect him to do more too, but I expect everybody to do more. I know one thing: He’s moving in the right direction for me.”
Livingston started and ran the offense well in Sunday’s 116-91 rout of the Orlando Magic at Staples Center. He had 10 assists and only one turnover in 24 minutes and the Clippers scored their most points this season.
In Saturday’s 97-88 loss to the Lakers, Livingston impressed on defense. He struggled with his shooting earlier in the season and lost confidence, but has appeared more aggressive recently.
“Like I said a long time ago, Shaun is the future of this ballclub at the point guard position,” Cassell said. “I’m just here holding down the position while he gets ready. I just want to teach him as much as possible while I’m here.
“Hopefully, he can learn as much as possible from me about how to be a leader. I want him to be a verbal guy. I want him to know how to lift guys up and bring them down. It’s all about winning, and I think he’s going to be a winner in this league.”
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Backup center Zeljko Rebraca, who has not played this season because of back problems, has received medical clearance to increase his rehabilitation workload.
“I feel much better now, and I’ll try to progressively get back into shape,” Rebraca said. “All the tests were good. Probably next week, I’ll start to do more and more.”
Rebraca was sidelined most of last season because of heart and conditioning problems. He did not attend training camp.
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KEYS TO THE GAME
* Elton Brand’s energy. Has he recovered from his long summer with the U.S. national team? It sure has seemed so in the last two games.
* Quinton Ross. Dwyane Wade had 33 points, but it could have been a lot worse for the Clippers without Ross’ standout defensive play.
* Sam Cassell to the rescue. When the Clippers needed to hang on late in the fourth quarter, Coach Mike Dunleavy turned to the steady veteran.
— JASON REID