Although acquiring a third-string point guard probably isnt a big move for most teams, it was for the Clippers with Dan Dickau because the teams other point guards — Sam Cassell and Brevin Knight — both are aging and have had recent injury issues.

Knights performance this upcoming season will be interesting to watch. He is known as a good floor leader who plays speedy defense, but his jump shot has always been suspect.

Oddly, Knight and Cassell (if pronounced a little differently) are both chess terms. Mind you, the Clippers used to have Sean Rooks, and its not a stretch to think someone named King or Bishop might eventually come through the college ranks.

Anyway, through free agency, the Clippers basically traded Jason Hart for Knight, and it will be interesting to see how each performs this season. Hart, who also has a cool last name, is with the Utah Jazz.

Hart took part in a fabulous defensive matchup last season, when he guarded Luther Head of the Houston Rockets. It was a typical Cartesian battle of Hart vs. Head. Usually, I like Head in that match-up, but I think Hart actually had the better night.

Ahoy! Yaroslav Korolev was in Clipper training camp on Tuesday, after signing a free-agent, tryout contract on Tuesday morning.

Barring some type of super-duper mega impressing of the coaching staff, Korolev will not be on the team this season. Even with some super-duper mega impressing, he still wont make the team because the Clippers already will have a league-maximum 15 players under contract.

Various items about Korolev have been on the Web and in the MSM speculating where he might play. One item said he would be playing in Turkey.

On Tuesday, Korolev took some time to clarify what happened.

“I did workouts with different teams, but of course, there are a lot of rumors, Korolev said. “If theres an offer from a team, then youre going there. But thats not true. If youre just talking to them, it doesnt mean youre going there. I was talking to a Turkey team, but Im here.

Korolev says he hopes to have such a great training camp that he shows an NBA team that he is worth signing. More realistically, he might show a foreign-league scout that he is worth signing or maybe an American minor league.

I have done a perusal of other Clipper blogs and chat rooms and the such and realize that the passion of Clipper nation remains strong, despite a potentially disastrous season on tap with Elton Brand and Shaun Livingston hurt.

I have also noticed that a lot of fans love to play coach and/or general manager trying to figure out who will make the team and who will start. As a member of the MSM Mainstream Media, I believe that means, — I have access and information to stop some of the misinformation out there. Some of it comes solely from the blogosphere, while other misinformation actually comes from the MSM itself.

A tidbit of news came out of the Clippers today. Elton Brand had the cast removed from his left leg and was fitted for a removable walking boot at Christiana Cares Wilmington Hospital in Wilmington, Del.

Brand has been ordered to wear the boot for six weeks, and during this time frame, hell be undergoing physical therapy.

What this all means is this: Brand is on the proper medical schedule to return from tearing his left Achilles on Aug. 3. There is no timetable for his return, but it is safe to say not in 2007.

Brands injury was a major blow to the Clippers, and theyll have to enact some sort of smoke and mirrors interior offense and defense in his absence. He meant so much to them in terms of rebounding, scoring and shot blocking that, quite frankly, the Clippers cannot replace him.

The Clippers can hope that Chris Kaman becomes an All-Star this year and that Tim Thomas has the best season of his life and thrives playing more power forward, instead of small forward. And even if that happens with Kaman and Thomas, the Clippers still will have a huge hole without Brand.

How this team remains competitive without Brand appears to be some sort of glorious riddle. Hence, please see the previous blog featuring Dunleavy and his moneybags

Elton Brand (Achilles) is expected to be out until at least 2008, and so will Shaun Livingston (horrific knee injury). Isn’t there an adage that there is opportunity within disaster???

Well, if that’s the case, maybe the upcoming Clippers’ season, which looks like a disaster waiting to happen on paper, can be salvaged if coach Mike Dunleavy shows why the Clippers signed him to a five-year extension worth about $25 million.

Yes, that’s $25 million!!! That’s huge cash. Even by NBA coaching salaries, that’s huge cash. One more time: $25 million!

Ka-ching:

Dunleavy has a chance to show he’s worth that by somehow leading the Clippers to the playoffs. Heck, he’d probably show a lot if he simply got the team to be competitive, considering those injuries.

Let’s see if “The Season of Injury” can become “The Season of Dunleavy.”

It’s probably the Clippers’ only hope.

Amid all the pain of the Clippers’ offseason, we forget about Brevin Knight. How much does he have left? How about Sam Cassell? What does he have left??

But amid the talk about all the veterans, assistant coach Rory White and the Clippers’ coaching staff have been hard at work developing the team’s young players, including draft pick Al Thornton and big man Chris Kaman…