For decades, the city of Los Angeles has been the home to the Lakers. They have been the better team by some distance and their rafters are proof of that. But there is another team in the city which has slowly but surely grown into a serious franchise over the years.
Yes, we are talking about the Los Angeles Clippers. After living in the shadows of the Lakers for decades, the Clippers are finally making some progress in the NBA. After the Chris Paul and Blake Griffin era was over, many believed that the Clippers’ growth has been stunted.
But the franchise proved everyone wrong by welcoming Kawhi Leonard and Paul George to the team. Now, before the 2022-23 NBA season begins, they are all set to add John Wall to the team as well.
Considering the bench strength that they have, the Clippers are certainly one of the top contenders to win an NBA Championship next season.
Today, we are not here to talk about that. Instead, we will focus on a great program that the Clippers started back in 2018. In 2018, the Clippers launched a program to renovate 350 basketball courts in the city of Los Angeles. The program was spearheaded by none other than Clippers owner Steve Ballmer.
Basketball court No. 350 of 350 renovated in Los Angeles by Steve and Connie Ballmer: The Michelle and Barack Obama Sports Center.
Ballmer and the Clippers started this program in 2018, and renovation of the 350th community court in the city of LA is now complete. pic.twitter.com/4jw4JBsNOH
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) June 28, 2022
Four years down the line, the project is finally complete and a small press conference was thrown to celebrate the achievement. At the conference, Steve Ballmer talked about this amazing achievement and what it means for his franchise.
“If we get some fans, super. If it just helps positively impact kids’ lives, that’s really what it’s about. But hey, if we get a few fans out of it, I’m good with that too… We’re here to win championships, excite fans, and help kids.”
Steve Ballmer on the community courts pic.twitter.com/BJ2VKcWOLi
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) June 29, 2022
“Obviously, it’s nice to have our logo at center court. In the outdoor, it’s nice to have them on the backboard. That’s great. If we get some fans, super. If it just helps positively impact kids’ lives, that’s really what it’s about. But hey, if we get a few fans out of it, I’m good with that too. One fan at a time. We’re cracking ’em, we’re scratching, we’re clawing. We’re here to win championships, excite fans, and help kids.”
This program was certainly a great step by Steve Ballmer and it will certainly make some fans switch their loyalties to the Clippers.
But as Ballmer said in his interview, it is not about converting fans. The primary goal of the program was to positively impact the lives of children in the city. Ballmer concluded by once again pointing out that the Clippers are here to win championships.
