Ma Jian

Nomomania it isn't. But for the Clippers, it constitutes a genuine break from the ordinary--an actual Clipper who puts fans in the seats and travels from Pond to Sports Arena with his own media entourage, his presence alone giving the people a reason to watch the Clippers, and write about the Clippers, if not necessarily believe in them. No, not Antonio McDyess. The Clippers had that one in their hands and flung it deep into the seats long ago.

WHEN THE Chinese writer Ma Jian was in his 20s, he and some friends went to a graveyard, where they found that some of the bodies, half-decomposed, had become unearthed. But they weren't scared or disgusted. Instead, they got closer. Using a stick, Ma recalls, "We removed the body parts. We wanted to take them home and wash them and keep them in formula."

WHEN THE Chinese writer Ma Jian was in his 20s, he and some friends went to a graveyard, where they found that some of the bodies, half-decomposed, had become unearthed. But they weren't scared or disgusted. Instead, they got closer. Using a stick, Ma recalls, "We removed the body parts. We wanted to take them home and wash them and keep them in formula."

Ma Jian has a failed marriage, a daughter he's forbidden to see, a girlfriend who's twice betrayed him for a pair of nylons, a prize-winning photo titled "Sunset Over Yanshan Petrochemical Plant," a fetid flat on a Beijing lane and trouble at work. "You do not understand how deeply you have been poisoned by bourgeois spiritual pollution!" accuses his Foreign Propaganda Department head. Ma can't keep up with the latest directives: He photographs heavy industry when the new focus is on light.

Ma Jian has a failed marriage, a daughter he's forbidden to see, a girlfriend who's twice betrayed him for a pair of nylons, a prize-winning photo titled "Sunset Over Yanshan Petrochemical Plant," a fetid flat on a Beijing lane and trouble at work. "You do not understand how deeply you have been poisoned by bourgeois spiritual pollution!" accuses his Foreign Propaganda Department head. Ma can't keep up with the latest directives: He photographs heavy industry when the new focus is on light.

Ma Jian, a member of the Chinese Olympic men's basketball team, did not meet academic requirements to enter UCLA, said Judith Holland, senior associate athletic director. Ma, a 6-foot-6 forward, told reporters during the Barcelona Games that he would enroll at UCLA this fall.

Clipper guard Brent Barry, who injured his left thumb in Tuesday night's 96-91 exhibition loss at Orlando, had his left hand put in a cast Thursday by Dr. Tony Zoppi, a hand specialist. Although X-rays revealed no fracture, Barry will be reevaluated Monday. * The Clippers waived swingman Ma Jian, the final player cut last season, and center Cory Reader to reduce their roster to 15.

A member of the Chinese Olympic team is expected to add more international flavor to the UCLA basketball team next season. Ma Jian, a 6-foot-6 forward, told reporters during the Barcelona Games that he will enroll at UCLA this fall. Ma, 22, would join a Bruin roster that will include two Czechs--Richard Petruska and Jiri Zidek--and a Texan of Nigerian descent--Ike Nwankwo of Houston.

Swingman Ma Jian, the Clippers' final cut last season, is back in training camp in Santa Barbara. Ma, attempting to become to the NBA's first Chinese-born player, cried when he was waived. "Nobody thought I could make it last year, but I thought I did a pretty good job," Ma said. "This year I know it's harder because they've got a lot of [players with] guaranteed contracts, but I'm going to try as hard as I can.

TO read for pure pleasure or to read for wisdom, there lies the question. Whether 'tis nobler to fall asleep, book propped on chest, or read riveted through the night. Michael Dirda, book critic for the Washington Post since 1978, not only reads for meaning but believes that books, carefully positioned at life's familiar turning points, can provide depth and direction.

Nomomania it isn't. But for the Clippers, it constitutes a genuine break from the ordinary--an actual Clipper who puts fans in the seats and travels from Pond to Sports Arena with his own media entourage, his presence alone giving the people a reason to watch the Clippers, and write about the Clippers, if not necessarily believe in them. No, not Antonio McDyess. The Clippers had that one in their hands and flung it deep into the seats long ago.

Calamity and Other Stories Daphne Kalotay Doubleday: 194 pp., $19.95 American literature has always had a soft spot for the plain style. True, the tug of war between minimalists and maximalists has been going on for more than a century, sometimes erupting into outright acrimony. (Witness Mark Twain's famous potshot at the circumlocutory Henry James: "Once you've put one of his books down, you simply can't pick it up again.") For many American writers, less remains very much more.