Shortly before the league forced Donald Sterling to sell the Los Angeles Clippers to Steve Ballmer, the franchise was slowly working their way to contention after decades near the bottom of the standings.
And from the very second Ballmer wrapped his hands around the franchise, you know great things were coming, as the former Microsoft executive demonstrated his enthusiasm and got heavily involved in their project.
Fast forward a couple of years and you have the Clippers as one of the strongest teams in the Western Conference, with Doc Rivers, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Lou Williams, and Patrick Beverley all committed to taking the franchise to the top of the league.
As a matter of fact, Ballmer even came to an agreement with the Forum in Inglewood, California, to make it the Clipper’s official arena after decades of living in the shadows of the Los Angeles Lakers in the Staples Center.
The deal was reportedly worth $400 million, but needless to say, money was never going to be a problem with Ballmer in charge of the franchise, as he’s one of the wealthiest men in the world and the wealthiest owner in the sports industry, as Forbes reported on their yearly list.
Ballmer is not only the wealthiest owner in the NBA. He’s the wealthiest by a huge stretch. Up to his day, his net worth is up to $52.7 billion, while his closest peers (Joseph Tsai of the Brooklyn Nets and Stanley Kroenke of the Denver Nuggets) are worth roughly $10 billion.
Obviously, $10 billion is a bunch load of cash, so the fact that Ballmer has five times as much as them really helps you put things into context.
Luckily for the NBA, Ballmer’s involvement has been heavily positive, as his philanthropist nature has done wonders with the low-income communities in Los Angeles, especially now with the COVID-19 pandemic.
