* Yesterday, Clippers owner Donald T. Sterling issued a quasi-ultimatum to Coach Mike Dunleavy, who is at the helm of the 12-25 last-place squad. “That’s why I’m paying [Dunleavy] the money I am. I want to see him win. I don’t want to tell him how to do it. I’m just interested in the conclusion. My whole philosophy is hire the best people and let them do their jobs,” Sterling continued. “There is no alternative, you have to rely on them, and if it doesn’t work out, either you’re patient or make changes, right?”

* Dunleavy barked back at his boss to “Be my guest!” He added, “It would be the biggest mistake you [Sterling] ever made.” Dunleavy received some support from Corey Maggette, the Clip whose name always seems to swirl in trade winds. “I just can’t throw my coach under the bus, regardless of people saying I don’t like him or we don’t get along. He’s had a hard time with the injuries. It’s always 50-50. Fifty percent [of the blame is] on us and 50% on the coach.”

* Before trouncing the Nets 128-94 at ARCO Arena last night, Ron Artest did some important thinking in the shower. That’s where he shared some wise words with his younger teammate, Francisco Garcia. “We’ve just got to keep doing the little things. Keep hustling. Keep running. If I don’t have a shot, somebody else can get a shot. Don’t focus on (yourself), not on Mike (Bibby), not on Kevin (Martin), not on Ron. Just focus on the team and winning. We’re all going to look good if we win.”

* Lawrence Frank wasn’t quite as positive about his team’s outing. “Pathetic performance,” said the Nets coach.

* Peter Vescey writes that the Nets’ “Miniature Three” needs to be disbanded: “Quite Frankly, Lawrence, after last week’s surrender to the Knicks , I’ve seen more than enough; you gotta go and that also goes for Jason Kidd and Vince Carter and maybe Richard Jefferson, too.”

* Mike Bibby looked good in his fourth game back from injury, tallying 15 points and 7 assists. “I’m trying to play faster,” said Bibby, “so we’ll see. This is my fourth game back. My timing is coming back. We’re winning, and that’s the good part. Everybody’s playing together. Tonight we got stops. We got rebounds. We were sharing the ball.”

* In his last two games against Milwaukee, Steve Nash has combined for 72 points. During last night’s 114-105 win, Nash went off for 37, 15 of which came during the fourth quarter. “It’s frustrating, but at the same time Steve Nash plays his best basketball when he’s getting 25 assists a game,” said Andrew Bogut. “We can’t afford to let him do that. We thought we’d be closer in the game if he’s scoring 30 and the other guys are around 10.” Unfortunately for Bogut, the numbers for his ideal strategy didn’t quite crunch: Nash had 37, Amare had 19, Marion had 14 and Raja Bell had 19.

* With Grant Hill back in the lineup after missing two weeks with appendectomy surgery, Boris Diaw is moving back to the bench. The only problem is that Diaw’s production as a starter was significantly better than when he came off the pine: “In 10 starts, Diaw shot 49 percent and averaged 11.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.1 assists,” writes Paul Coro. “In 31 reserve outings, Diaw shot 41 percent and averaged 6.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists.” Mike D’Antoni said that Diaw “has to be mentally able to accept” his role as a reserve.

* Life in Milwaukee isn’t the most exciting for NBA players, especially when you’re not winning. It impacts the NBA free agent market, writes Mike Dodd. “If you ain’t winning, it becomes real long and rainy and boring,” said Sam Cassell.

* SI’s Steve Aschburner notes that if the playoffs started today, neither the Jazz nor the Kings would be alive. Didn’t Stephen A. Smith say there would be parity between the East and West in an ESPN commercial?