The Sterling/NBA saga is nearing an end… hopefully *fingers crossed*
Since Donald Sterling’s wife, Shelly, was given total control over the sell of the LA Clippers, the selling of the NBA franchise got a little easier. After Sterling was declared mentally incapacitated after three long decades of being the owner of the LA Clippers, Shelly has been acting as the lone trustee of the Sterling Estate and has successfully agreed to sell the LA Clippers to former Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer.
They both released statements:
“I am delighted that we are selling the team to Steve, who will be a terrific owner,” Shelly Sterling said in her statement. “We have worked for 33 years to build the Clippers into a premiere NBA franchise. I am confident Steve will take the team to new levels of success.”
“I will be honored to have my name submitted to the NBA Board of Governors for approval as the next owner of the Los Angeles Clippers,” Ballmer said in his statement. “I love basketball. And I intend to do everything in my power to ensure that the Clippers continue to win – and win big – in Los Angeles.”
Ballmer, who was the highest bidder of $2Billion beat out Music legend David Geffen group (which included Oprah Winfrey and Larry Ellison) of $1.6B.
Hopefully, this sale goes through and this hell can end. This terrible saga has taken away the attention of some amazing NBA playoff games, that we haven’t see in years. The NBA has yet to comment on the sale and if agreed, they could possibly cancel the June 3rd vote of the NBA Board of Governors, which would strip Sterling of his rights as an owner.