Return of players is gift for Clippers’ Doc Rivers

Doc Rivers and Paul Pierce celebrated their birthdays in Shanghai on Tuesday by reviving an NBA tradition.

Clippers rookie Branden Dawson sang to them on the roof of their team hotel.

“That was great from Branden,” Rivers said with a chuckle during a phone conversation with The Times. “Well, it was as good as it was going to be from Branden.”

Rivers turned 54 and Pierce 38, ages that tend to prompt old-man jokes in professional sports.

“I told him, ‘Combined, we’re 92 years old,’” Rivers said of Pierce.

Chris Paul and Austin Rivers delivered a birthday surprise to Doc Rivers when they participated in practice after having sat out the Clippers’ exhibition loss to the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday in Shenzhen, China. Doc Rivers said both players wanted to play in the rematch between the teams Wednesday in Shanghai.

Paul broke his left index finger during a collision with Pierce, Rivers said, but the severity of the fracture was lessened because it was on the upper part of the finger where there’s no tendons. Austin Rivers had five teeth re-implanted after catching a wayward elbow from Dawson.

The Clippers struggled against the Hornets without their top two point guards, but Doc Rivers said there were other factors that contributed to the lackluster showing. The coach had put his team through back-to-back practices lasting at least three hours, and there’s also the jet-lag factor.

Rivers also pinned part of the Clippers’ defensive issues on new pick-and-roll coverages that he said players have not mastered.

The trip has been about more than basketball, of course. Rivers said he took his players to a Buddhist temple and had dinner at a rooftop bar with Chinese superstar Yao Ming and former teammate Patrick Ewing.

“Patrick Ewing looked small,” Rivers said, noting the comparison between the longtime New York Knicks center and the 7-foot-6 Ming. The Clippers have another basketball clinic scheduled before their next game against the Hornets. Then they will return to California.

“It’s been a great trip for us,” Rivers said. “If we’re lucky enough to win it at the end of the year, I guarantee part of the reason will be because of China.”

Follow Ben Bolch on Twitter @latbbolch

Bolch reported from L.A.