KAREEM OF THE CLIPPERS? WHAT DOES LOUSY CLUB HAVE TO LOSE BY HIRING JABBAR?

Byline: Kevin Modesti

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, as prolific at the word processor as he was in the paint, has written his fourth book, this one a memoir of the months the Hall of Fame center spent in 1998-99 coaching a high school team at the White Mountain Apache Reservation in Arizona.

``A Season on the Reservation'' (William Morrow and Company) is about more than basketball, as we've come to expect from Abdul-Jabbar. It's about race and history and self-realization. But there's something for just plain basketball fans as well.

Abdul-Jabbar jabs back at Magic Johnson and Kurt Rambis for their criticisms of their old Showtime Lakers teammate. He explains why he had to get away from the sport after retiring as a player in 1989. He discusses (yet again) his aloof image.

And he expresses his frustrated desire to get back into big-time basketball as a head coach.

``Pro and college executives seemed to be looking for people who had come up through the ranks as coaches or who had always stayed attached to the game,'' he writes. ``I was a loner, people said, who didn't fit the corporate mold that some universities or pro franchises were now pursuing.''

He muses that he might prefer coaching at the college level - ``maybe I would be more at peace in the academic world.'' He adds, ``Or maybe the right opportunity in the NBA simply hadn't come along yet.''

But the right opportunity might yet exist in the shadow of Kareem's Beverly Hills home, if a certain local pro franchise shows the imagination to consider him.

The Clippers fired head coach Chris Ford last week and put assistant Jim Todd in charge on an interim basis. The move made perfect sense, since you can't fire the owner.

Unless the NBA's second-worse team improves fast, it will be looking for another new head coach at the end of the season. And Todd is not off to a promising start, losing his first two games, one at home to the Chicago Bulls, the NBA's worst team.

If (when) they go looking for their next coach, the Clippers can settle for another NBA retread, of which Ford was one in a long line. Or they can take the kind of gamble for which they are uniquely suited, having so little to lose.

How does coach Kareem sound?

It's a good fit for both sides.

Kareem, being eager for a chance to coach, presumably would accept a sub-market salary to do so, something that would appeal to the Clippers.

Kareem would bring some intrigue and excitement to the Clippers' corner of the Staples Center, and maybe a few more fans.

Kareem, if the team showed any improvement under him, could, with his presence alone, help the Clippers keep and attract free agents.

Kareem would be well qualified to coach the Clippers' young front line. In fact, he once did some one-on-one tutoring with 7-foot center Michael Olowokandi.

Kareem writes about his fear that ``certain aspects of the game were being lost - especially those having to do with how big men should play basketball. . . . The way I'd been taught to approach the sport was fading. . . . '' Let's see what he'd do about it.

Being the leading scorer in pro basketball history doesn't automatically qualify Kareem to be a great coach. Plenty of Hall of Fame players in every sport have tried and failed. But recent ex-players seem to have a head start when it comes to relating to current players. Kareem would have an edge in that regard compared to the next Don Casey, Mike Schuler, Bob Weiss or Bill Fitch.

Does Kareem have the personality to coach? That might be the trap-door question. So far, the closest he has gotten to an NBA job is an interview with the Washington Wizards last April. The Wizards hired Gar Heard (prior career record: 9-44).

Kareem has the interest, though. He told a CBS interviewer the lack of job offers ``is kind of baffling'' and bothers him.

And what if he gets the Clippers job but loses interest? At least working for Donald Sterling for a year or two would provide great material for book No. 5.

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Photo: Basketball Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, gesturing, helped coach a high school team on the Apache reservation.

Shara A. Wells/Associated Press