Noah Graham/Getty Images
LOS ANGELES – The 42,500 square-foot building that sits at 6951 South Centinela Avenue in Playa Vista, a small neighborhood in southwestern Los Angeles, should seriously be considered one of the great Wonders of the World. Not because of its sleek architectural design, state-of-the-art digital video facilities or snazzy security system at the door that requires your thumb print to enter.
No, it has everything to do with the name resting atop the building.
Los Angeles Clippers
For the first time in its 38-year history, including the past 25 years in Los Angeles, the Clippers have a home. A place where their players can go practice, work-out, watch game tape, get treatment, stow their belongings in a locker and take a shower.
If these are simple luxuries that you figured were afforded to most players on a professional sports team, you would be correct except for the fact that we're talking about the Clippers here, the only NBA team that shares an arena with another NBA team. The Clippers weren't even scheduled to be tenants of the Staples Center until after plans for the arena had already been drawn up. This may explain why the Lakers' locker room and players' lounge covers 4,900 square feet while the Clippers' is only 3,600 square feet -- after a redesign wedged them in next to the arena football team's locker room.
While most NBA teams have long trained in their own state-of-the-art facilities, the Clippers, prior to the opening of their brand new training center this week, practiced at the Spectrum Club, a health club open to the public in the South Bay. In previous seasons they practiced at Los Angeles Southwest College.
When Corey Maggette was asked at Warriors' media day this week what the biggest difference between the Clippers and the Warriors was, he quickly mentioned the gym difference. "At the Clippers we played at a fitness center until 1:00 pm, then we had to sign up and play (with other people)," he told the Press Democrat. "I was dominating all those years, had some 40-year-olds and 50-year-olds. This is going to be a big transition year for Baron Davis. Yes, yes, I think he's in for a rude awakening. I wish him the best."
Unless Davis decides to sign-up for a membership at the Spectrum, which doesn't seem necessary now that he's dropped 20 pounds thanks to Jenny Craig, it probably won't be as big of a rude awakening. But as Davis walked around the facility, showing off his new home, he knew how fortunate he was after talking to some of his older teammates, such as Cuttino Mobley.
"They told me that they used to practice at a health club, some local sports club," he said. "You could be working out and somebody right next to you would be talking your ear off about the game or asking for tickets. There was really no privacy and it's hard to build team camaraderie when you can only work out on the bike for 20 minutes and your teammates are split up amongst [health club members]. Nothing against the health clubs out here, but it's nice to have a home."
Davis, however, isn't holding his breath on getting his own arena anytime soon. He knows which NBA team runs both the town and the arena he'll be playing in for the foreseeable future.
"The Lakers own the Staples Center, we're just renting," he said. "It is what it is. We have a lot of ground to make up but we know who we have to chase down to be respected in this city and in this league."
Shanon Lersh
Taylor Walker
Men's Grand Slam All-Time Leaders
Roger Federer's Grand Slam Titles
Comments (16) Add A Comment
cuttino mobley?
when... happened
Froggli
Total Comments (64)
of course he won't be getting his own arena
Donald Sterling is too cheap and the citizens of Los Angeles aren't dopes like the rest of the USA and won't pay for an arena....
you don't like LA, don't play here...
blueintheblood
Honolulu, HI
Total Comments (298)
"now that he's dropped 20 pounds"
This is actually the most interesting bit on this story!
Hyped78
Lisbon, Portugal, EU
Total Comments (6891)
funniest story i have read in a long time....but I guess a 60 million dollar deal like the one baron got could make up for anything...the clips are truly the minor leagues.
rockyjordan
Philadelphia , PA
Total Comments (25)
Donald Sterling knows he's the biggest joke of an owner in professional sports but he doesn't care. It's all about an investment for him. He bought the Clippers back in '81 for ~12 million. The team is probably worth close to 300 million. That is all that matters to him. Not winning. Not success. Why do you think that 99% of all players would rather have their testicles caught in a meat grinder than play for the clippers?
The Warden
Beverly Hills , CA
Total Comments (939)
I never understood why the Clippers were treated like this all these years. They've always been the "B" team in Los Angeles, but to be the "B" team of the entire NBA? Donald Sterling is getting into Al Davis territory.
QuietStorm12
Baton Rouge , LA
Total Comments (490)
Every day I'm faced with the striking reality that this team used to be my Buffalo Braves..... how the mighty have fallen....
BuffaloTF
Total Comments (1669)
I actually had season tickets for the Clips in the 90s..... they were still playing at the old LA Sports Arena..... cracked floors, dangerous parking lots..... the biggest hole you could imagine..... their facilities weren't even second class at the time..... looks like idiot Sterling finally did something right..... although why do I think something bad will come of this..... because they're the Clippers!!!..... is Elgin Baylor still the GM???
Sir Robin (again)
Camelot, UK
Total Comments (11174)
Apparently you didn't watch the Davis press conference today on SportsCenter..... dude has dropped below any living human at this point..... he's made it so that nobody decent will ever, ever coach the Raiders again..... not that anyone decent would have before..... Maybe he can find a high school coach who's eager.... and naive.....
Sir Robin (again)
Camelot, UK
Total Comments (11174)
Shame Baron walked away a fan base that actually loved him..
nicageo
South San Francisco , CA
Total Comments (55)
They need to move to San Diego and just get it over with.
Pouchu
Nashville, TN
Total Comments (2)
There is a perfect sports areana for the Clippers in Orange County, California, that the Clippers once considered and could call their own: The Honda Center. Why they don't move there is beyond me.
As the Anaheim, err, Los Angeles Angeles, have proved: you can be in Anaheim and still call yourself "Los Angeles".
EricB
Irvine , CA
Total Comments (2)
That's a nice facility..... and they did play a few games there for a while that were well attended.....it's said that Sterling thought it was too far away for him to attend the games... and that's the only reason they didn't move there....because it was too inconvenient for Sterling himself.....
Sir Robin (again)
Camelot, UK
Total Comments (11174)
I'D RATHER BE A CLIPPER FAN THAN A LAKER WANT TO BE !!!!!! HOW CAN A LAKER FAN LOOK KOBE IN THE FACE !!!!!!!! HE DESTROYED THAT TEAM !!! BOTTOM LINE, THE CLIPPERS LOST IN REGULAR SEASON AND THE LAKERS LOST IN THE PLAYOFFS. THEY BOTH LOST !!!!
CHAS.
Northridge , CA
Total Comments (3)
Finally Sterling loosens up his purse strings and gets the clippers a practice facility, like he promised dunleavy when he hired him. now maybe he will open up his purse strings a little to hit up a big free agent on '09, '10 (bosh, boozer) and the clip train will be rollin'. kudos to mike dunleavy for getting sterling to spend his shillings, since no other coach in clip history has been about to do that.
DONALD STERLING, I'M GIVING YOU ONE MORE CHANCE TO PROVE THAT YOU'RE NOT A CHEAP OWNER. I KNOW YOU MADE BOATLOADS OF MONEY ALL THOSE YEARS YOU SPENT NOTHING ON THE TEAM. I KNOW YOU KNOW THAT LA IS THE 2ND BIGGEST MEDIA MARKET AND PEOPLE WILL COME TO CLIPPERS GAMES REGARDLESS OF THEIR RECORD. I'M THROWING DOWN THE GAUNTLET FOR YOU, OR ALL MY FRIENDS AND I WILL WALK AWAY FROM THE CLIPPERS.
BTW, YOU LAKERS FANS ARE PANSIES FOR NEEDING A WINNING TEAM TO PROP UP YOUR PATHETIC LIVES. KOBE DOESN'T CARE ABOUT YOU NO MATTER HOW MANY OF HIS JERSEYS YOU OWN.
dee619
Alhambra , CA
Total Comments (4)
DEAR ELGIN
PLEASE TRADE TIM THOMAS TO ANY ONE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MAKE IT A PACKAGE DEAL WE ARE WILLING TO TAKE ONE PAPER CLIP AND A TRASH BAG. I KNOW IT MAY SOUND LIKE A BAD DEAL BUT THE PAPER CLIP AND THE TRASH BAG WILL BE BETTER FOR THE TEAM THAN THAT "SLUG".
CHAS.
Northridge , CA
Total Comments (3)
Comment
Remember to keep your posts clean. Profanity will get filtered, and offensive comments will be removed.