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Clippers, Ballmer Look To Change Things In LA With New Arena…

Since the Los Angeles Clippers moved to Los Angeles back in 1984 they never had a place to call home. 

They played in the LA Sports arena for 15 years before moving into the Staples Center (now called Crypto.com arena) in 1999 along with the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Kings

Overshadowed by both the Lakers and Kings and as well as the Los Angeles Dodgers who have all won multiple championships for the city of LA, the Clippers haven’t come close to bringing home a title. So they have had to relegate to covering up Lakers championship banners that hang in the rafters inside the arena to make it feel more like a “Clippers home court.” 

Now Owner Steve Ballmer and Clippers fans have something to look forward to and call their own.

Some people even suggested that the Clippers moved back to San Diego were they played for six years or maybe move them to the Northwest Seattle area where Ballmer and his family lived.

That’s not what Ballmer wanted to do, he wanted to put this franchise on the map in the city of the bright lights.

So they are in the midst of building a new arena next to where the superbowl Champion Los Angeles Rams play their home games in Inglewood, California. The new arena will be called the Intuit Dome.

Owner Steve Ballmer and Inglewood’s Mayor James Butts were out at the new stadium speaking to the media and the local news about his excitement of the new arena.

 Ballmer is incredibly “excited” looking forward to this new arena and what fans can help bring on a nightly basis.  

The arena will consist of one side of the arena behind one of the baskets 51 rows high called, “The Wall.” Ballmer would like for fans to think of this like a “student section in a college game, with that sense of energy and enthusiasm.” 

They are going to be building a parking garage west of the arena for fans as they go to and from the arena. 

Mayor Butts, who also spoke at the press conference said this would be the “biggest community benefits agreement in the history of sports.” It’s said that it cost 100 million and 75 million would help constitute affordable housing for the city of Inglewood. 

The Clippers have been an after-thought since coming to LA several decades ago. Yes, they’ve had a few good seasons during the lob-city era that got the fans excited but they were never really able to gain the respect from fans around LA. The other team in LA got all the attention and for several good reasons.

They’ve had several Hall-of Famers put on that purple & gold jersey and when the Lakers were playing that’s when celebrities would show up to the arena, they rarely showed up to watch the Clippers. 

Now with the Clippers essentially starting from scratch in LA, they now have an opportunity to change the way fans in LA look at this franchise and build their own. 

The new Intuit Dome should attract fans and hopefully allow the Clippers to call it their own and they have a fired up owner who seems willing to do anything to get this franchise its first ever title in their 44 year history.  

They have all the required pieces to change the way they are perceived. 

 

They have two bonafide All-Stars in Paul George and Kawhi Leonard who should be back 100% this season coming off injuries and several solid pieces surrounding them. They have one the best coaches in Tyron Lue who has already shown he can lead a team to a title after helping the Cleveland Cavaliers back in 2016. 

If they want to be taken seriously in a city full of glitz and glamor, stars, and celebrities they are going to have to win. All the new arena’s and facilities are great, but if they don’t win, none of it matters. 

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