Currently sharing the Staples Center with the Lakers, it’s been known for some time now that the Los Angeles Clippers would like their own venue in Southern California.
Up until now, issues with the team’s lease at their current venue and unattractive possibilities elsewhere have forced the Clippers to stay put.
That could very well change here soon.
According to the Los Angeles Times, representatives for Clippers owner Steve Ballmer are talking to those close to Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke about a new NBA venue in Inglewood.
“Representatives of Steve Ballmer and Stan Kroenke, two of the richest owners in professional sports, have had multiple discussions about the Clippers joining the Rams and Chargers in the sports and entertainment district Kroenke is building in Inglewood,” the Times report read on Friday.
According to the report, the arena itself could either be on the 300-acre lot of the Rams/Chargers joint stadium or adjacent to it. Regardless, this is some rather interesting news coming out of Southern California.
For those of you not old enough to remember, the Lakers themselves played in Inglewood at the Forum from 1967-99. That venue still stands and hosts some of the biggest concerts in Southern California. If the Rams and Chargers were to build an arena as part of a near $3 billion entertainment complex, it would act as major competition for the Forum.
The backdrop here is what makes this so interesting. Ballmer, the former CEO of Microsoft, is said to be worth $30 billion. Meanwhile, Kroenke’s net worth is currently set at $7.4 billion by Forbes.
Money talks in sports. Money talks in entertainment. And surely, money talks in Hollywood. Put all of this together, and it doesn’t seem unreasonable to believe the Clippers could join the Rams in Inglewood by the time the calendar strikes 2019.