Michael Ventre

It is a familiar comment heard around playoff time in any sport:

“We’re not just happy to be here. We want to win.”

Admirable though the sentiment may be, it’s hardly realistic, because if you do the math, not everyone wins.

As the saying goes, not everyone can be a hero; some of us have to stand on the street corner and cheer as they go by.

With that in mind, the cheerleaders for the 2006 NBA playoffs are gearing up for action. The Clippers, Lakers, Grizzlies, Kings, Wizards, Bucks, Pacers and Bulls are poised for valiant but ultimately fruitless forays into contention for the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

At the top of the list are the Los Angeles Clippers, not because they’re particularly vulnerable and weak but because they’re rarely around this late. A Clippers sighting in the postseason is almost as unlikely as spotting crabgrass on a green at Augusta. League representatives are expected to address the Clippers in the coming days to explain what the playoffs are and how they are conducted.

Of the 16 teams that are playoff eligible at the moment, only the Clippers, Lakers, Bucks and Cavaliers did not participate in the postseason last year. And of those, the Clippers have spent the longest period of time in lottery land; their last playoff appearance was in 1997 — when they qualified with a losing record.

But these aren’t your father’s Clippers, or your grandfather’s Clippers, or your great-grandfather’s Clippers. Late-night comedians have targeted other teams for mockery this season, a clear sign that the Clips have arrived.

They have a cohesive and confident group led by Elton Brand, Corey Maggette, Chris Kaman, Cuttino Mobley, Sam Cassell and Shaun Livingston. Coach Mike Dunleavy has done a Coach of the Year-quality job with a team that had been weighed down by the negativity of past seasons.

They’re the No. 6 seed in the West and face the Denver Nuggets in the first round, a team that is not impossible to beat in a series. But they’ll probably lose, because at least the Nuggets were in the playoffs last season, while the Clippers have only seen playoffs on TV.

Slide show   Playoff performers Check out the stars who need to shine in the NBA playoffs.

Their crosstown rivals, the Lakers, are in an entirely different position. Playoff appearances are almost as common to them as 40-point nights by Kobe. The organization boasts 14 championships, dating back to its Minneapolis days. The Lakers have been in the Finals 28 times.

Yet these Lakers are starting over. They missed the playoffs last season, their first of the post-Shaq era. With Phil Jackson back on the bench, they’re headed in the right direction. But it has been a slog. A playoff berth this season was no gimme. After Kobe, there is Lamar Odom, who has shaken the stigma of inconsistency by playing well of late. And Kwame Brown also has shown improvement.

Beyond that, the Lakers don’t have much. And they probably don’t have enough to defeat their first-round opponent, the Phoenix Suns, even with Amare Stoudamire in street clothes.

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