The Los Angeles Clippers might be leaving the Staples Center in L.A. for greener pastures in the near future.
Clippers will announce tomorrow that they are closing in on building a stadium in Inglewood, sources.
— Brad Turner (@BA_Turner) June 14, 2017
Hearing from multiple sources #Clippers and city of Inglewood closing in on a ENA for new #Clippers arena.
— Vincent Bonsignore (@VinnyBonsignore) June 14, 2017
It looks like Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, formerly of Microsoft, will foot the bill for the stadium.
Clippers owner Steve Ballmer will finance the stadium 100% with his own money, source. He did buy the Clippers for $2 billion.
— Brad Turner (@BA_Turner) June 14, 2017
Ballmer financing the arena himself eliminates the roadblock of looking for lots of public money, which has caused issues for other owners in the past. Many fans don’t believe public money should be used for private buildings like sports stadiums.
It makes a lot of sense for the Clippers to move into their own place, though. They are the No. 3 team at Staples Center in Los Angeles, behind the L.A. Lakers (NBA) and L.A. Kings (NHL). Being the third tenant is far from ideal — it doesn’t allow you get the best dates and times, among other things.
This is a good move for the Clippers, but they have many other important decisions to make in the short term, such as deciding whether to re-sign superstar free agents Chris Paul and Blake Griffin.
Thumbnail photo via Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports Images
