Los Angeles Clippers rumors are flying at a breakneck pace after Tuesday’s ouster of owner Donald Sterling, with a number of high-profile potential buyers lining up with an interest in owning the franchise.
Sterling was banned for life on Tuesday, the result of a racist recording that was released over the weekend. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said he would push the league’s other owners to force Sterling into selling the team, adding that he was confident the owners would follow through.
That leaves the Los Angeles Clippers in an uncertain position, with a sale likely but a timeline not yet determined. A recent Forbes valuation put the Clippers worth $575 million, though many experts believe the team’s attractive location and championship-ready core will push the sale to $1 billion or more.
As a result, many big names are reportedly interested. One group that has already expressed interest is made up of media titan Oprah Winfrey, entertainment executive David Geffen, and Oracle CEO Larry Ellison.
“Oprah is not interested in running the team,” Geffen told Jeremy Schaap of ESPN . “She thinks it would be a great thing for an important black American to own [another] franchise.
“The team deserves a better group of owners who want to win. Larry would sooner die than fail. I would sooner die than fail. Larry’s a sportsman. We’ve talked about this for a long time. Between the three of us, we have a good shot.”
Magic Johnson, the NBA legend with the Clippers neighbor Los Angeles Lakers, has also expressed interest in purchasing the team . He even got a nod of approval from the NBA commissioner himself.
“Magic Johnson knows he’s always welcome as an owner in this league,” Silver said. “He’s been a part owner in the past of the Los Angeles Lakers and is always welcome and a close friend of the NBA family.”
Los Angeles Clippers rumors are also focusing on another sports figure. Floyd Mayweather Jr. said he would like to put a potential ownership group together and was “very, very interested in buying the Clippers.”
