L.A. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer joined Jimmy Kimmel on Tuesday night to discuss a number of topics. The biggest topics touched on were the current state of his Clippers, a new arena for the team, and free agency *cough* Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant *cough.*
To start the show, Ballmer reiterated for what feels like the hundredth time that the team will stay in Los Angeles, and that he has no plans to sell the team after purchasing it for a record $2 billion in 2014.
“Well, the answer is basically yes,” replied Ballmer when asked if the Clippers are profitable. “Someday when I'm dead, because we're not gonna sell the team when I'm alive… Someday when I'm dead, hopefully many many many moons from now, somebody will sell that team and believe me, it’ll be better than buying anything in the stock market.”
One of the biggest questions about the Clippers over the last few weeks has been their true desire to compete this season. They traded away arguably their best player in Tobias Harris, a free agent-to-be, getting back young players and stockpiling on future draft picks.
“We don’t give up,” responded Ballmer when asked if the Clippers are still competing this year. ” [It's the] fundamental of our culture. We’re about having tough, hard-playing, competitive guys. We’re about having tough, hard playing staff in Doc Rivers and Jerry West, I like being a tough, hard-playing, competitive guy.
“But we’re also set up to have a world-class roster next year. We’ve got great guys coming back and we have the ability to look for additional big guys.”
Unlike another top-level member of an L.A. basketball team, Ballmer didn't wink or make any tongue-in-cheek jokes about signing free agents when prompted a few times by Kimmel. When asked about Golden State Warriors' star Kevin Durant, Toronto Raptors' star Kawhi Leonard, and Philadelphia 76ers star Jimmy Butler, all Ballmer could do was smile.
Another significant part of attracting free agents is the new Inglewood arena Ballmer wants as the new home of the L.A. Clippers.
“We’re the third tenants, we play on the worst nights, we’ve got the crappiest locker room, we’ve got the least money,” said Ballmer. “But at the end of the day you say, hey, if we’re gonna be a first class organization in the world, boom, we’ve got to have our own house! We gotta stand for something. We’ve got to have our building just cry out and tell our fans these guys are in, it’s gotta be something that attracts our players. I want a different environment than you get in staples. I want a building that helps pump and thump the energy.”
Thus far, Ballmer has done everything the right way, prioritizing his team before anything else, and it shows with every word he has to say about the Clippers.
“I’m worried that if you guys ever win an NBA title, that is going to be the day you die because you get so excited, I fear a vein in your head would explode,” joked Kimmel.
“It would be a good way to go, wouldn’t it?” responded Ballmer.
Competing now, possible free agents joining their team, and a new arena likely in their future. Clippers fans have to be excited about the energy and excitement Ballmer has about his team's future.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXKPaddZZss
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