SAN DIEGO -- Doc Rivers is trying to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to their first NBA title this season, but the team's new coach understands that no matter what happens, Los Angeles is a Lakers town.

"It always will be," Rivers said.

So how do the Clippers go about changing that?

"We're not going to try," Rivers said. "We're just going to fight for our fans. We don't want to take away the Lakers' fans. They're great. They have forged their own history. We're going to forge our own history. The city is big enough to have two teams."

Rivers said there was no extra motivation to play in Staples Center, where the Lakers' championship banners and retired jerseys hang from the rafters, but that he looks forward to the teams' four games this season as the Clippers look to develop their own home-court advantage.