This Season Not so Painful

Last season was a tough one for the Clippers and trainer Jasen Powell. The lost 170 man-games because of injury or illness. But this season has been a different story. The Clippers have basically been free of major injuries.

“The guys have been cooperative in following my theory of treating the injury before the injury,” said Powell, who, at 28, is one of professional sports’ youngest head trainers. “The core of my deal is prevention outside the normal weightlifting.”

Working with a team that includes five players 21 or younger is a lot easier than working with a veteran team, he said.

“Because a lot of times the guys have never been any other place but here,” said Powell, a former Cal Poly Pomona basketball player. “So when you tell them to do something, they can’t respond by saying they did it some other way someplace else.”

Coach Alvin Gentry is surprised the Clippers haven’t had more injuries.

“It’s amazing because we have so many young guys who run up and down and are high-flying type of players,” he said. “It’s really saying something that we don’t have injuries.”

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The Clippers did not practice Tuesday but will work out today. Lamar Odom, who has two games remaining in his five-game suspension for violating the league’s anti-drug program, is expected to work out with the team for the first time since his suspension.