Lack of cable deal symbol of rough start for Clippers. (Up Front).

The Lakers aren't the only team off to a lousy start this year.

After a promising 2001-2002 season in which they made big strides toward building up a local fan base and narrowly missed the playoffs, the Los Angeles Clippers were 7-13 late last week and once again looking up from near the bottom of the National Basketball Association's Pacific Division.

And despite a new 25-game package with KTLA-TV (Channel 5), there is an impasse between the Clippers and Fox Sports resulting in about a dozen fewer games aired on television this year than last.

Officials for Fox, whose Fox Sports Net and Fox Sports 2, carried about 40 Clippers games per year for the past five years, say they remain open to negotiating a new deal for the second part of the season. But Andy Roeser, executive vice president for the Clippers, said last week that was unlikely to happen.

"We intend to revisit the cable issue next year with Fox," Roeser said. "Both parties agree that it would be good to continue to carry the games, but we weren't able to make a deal this season."

The lack of a cable deal comes at a crucial time for the Clippers, which has had a tough time competing with the Lakers in generating a local fan base. Last year, the team saw a surge of popularity that lifted its average attendance at Staples Center to about 18,000 from 14,600 the year before, the third biggest jump in the league.

"Obviously, it's unfortunate for their growing number of fans," said Bill Sanders, director of marketing for BDA Sports Management, which represents Clippers' Michael Olowokandi and Marko Jaric. "Long-term loyalty comes through exposure to the team."

People with knowledge of the negotiations said the Clippers balked when Fox tried to cut its licensing fee by up to 20 percent and insisted on a long-term deal of up to eight years.

The impetus for Fox seeking a lower rate stems from the NBA's new television contract, which permits the league's national cable partners, TNT and ESPN, to overlap some games carried by teams' local cable broadcasters.

"With the new NBA rights deal, we didn't think the NBA rights were worth as much as they were in the past," said Steve Simpson, vice president and general manager of Fox Sports Net and Fox Sports 2.

The Clippers' 25-game deal with KTLA means that only 11 fewer games will be shown locally compared to last season, Roeser said. "I don't agree with the premise that we've disappeared," he said.