Clippers give Rivers front-office title

In the midst of the saga involving unsettled ownership, the Los Angeles Clippers shuffled their front office Monday.

Coach Doc Rivers added the title of president of basketball operations, putting him in charge of deciding which players will make up his roster.

Kevin Eastman, formerly an assistant coach, will be Rivers’ deputy as the vice president of basketball operations.

Dave Wohl, formerly the director of pro scouting, gains the title of general manager.

Three men were demoted: Gary Sacks, from vice president of basketball operations to assistant general manager; Gerald Madkins, from basketball operations director to scouting director; and Jason Piombetti, from scouting director to assistant scouting director.

The Los Angeles Times reported that former New Jersey Nets and Detroit Pistons head coach Lawrence Frank is a candidate to become an assistant coach under Rivers. Frank is still under contract with the Nets, but the Clippers could work out a deal in which they pay a portion of his salary, according to the newspaper.

The sale of the Clippers remains in limbo as owner Donald Sterling fights his wife, Shelly Sterling, over whether she had the authority to sell the team to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer for $2 billion. Earlier this year, the NBA banned Donald Sterling for life and fined him $2.5 million after he was heard making racist statements in a recorded conversation.