Oh, happy day, OH HAPPY DAAAAAAAY! Steve Ballmer Officially The Owner Of The Los Angeles Clippers Via ESPN The Los Angeles Clippers officially have a new owner. Steve Ballmer’s bid to purchase the team closed Tuesday after the entry of an order by a California court confirmed the authority of Shelly Sterling to sell the team on behalf of the Sterling Family Trust, the league announced. Ballmer, the former Microsoft CEO, bid $2 billion for the Clippers in May. The NBA Board of Governors interviewed Ballmer on July 15, then took a vote electronically last week to approve him, sources told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne. Ballmer decided he would complete the sale as soon as the judges’ written order came in, at 11:30 a.m. ET Tuesday. Ballmer’s takeover of the Clippers follows weeks of legal tussling between Shelly and Donald Sterling, the 80-year-old billionaire whom the NBA banned earlier this year for making offensive remarks about blacks. Donald Sterling still is expected to appeal the sale, sources told Shelburne. Drafts of the Clippers’ sale bid book, given to bidders by Bank of America and obtained by ESPN.com, revealed that the $2 billion price paid would be 12.1 times the expected 2014 revenues of the team. The bid book noted that the highest previous sale was the record that Ballmer beat, the Milwaukee Bucks, who sold for $550 million this year and a then-record five times total revenue. Says Ballmer about the Clippers’ future: “I’ve got big dreams for the team,” he told the Times. “I’d love to win a championship. I’d love the Clippers to be the most dynamic, vibrant team and name in professional sports. “The only way any of this makes sense — my desire to spend time in Los Angeles, this team, its aspirations, this community, this purchase price, any of that — is to really live out the dream and make this kind of America’s team.” We just glad that this whole situation didn’t drag out into the next season. Peace, Don. Don’t let the doorknob get lodged in your anus on the way out. Image via Splash
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It’s A Wrap: Rich Racist Donald Sterling Officially Out As L.A. Clippers Owner, Steve Ballmer Take Over Effective Immediately
