Donald Sterling has gotten offers in excess of $2.5 billion for Clippers

It looks like Donald Sterling is going forward with the sale of the Los Angeles Clippers. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban suggested that the team would sell far north of $1 billion, suggesting the opening bid could be as high as $1.5 billion.

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“I wouldn’t be shocked if the bidding starts at $1.5 billion,” Cuban said in a brief interview before the Indianapolis 500 race, via the Los Angeles Times.

“Acquiring the franchise has gone from rich guys or women being able to write a check for a team, to it being a consortium where you have a lot of stakeholders,” Cuban said before that estimate..

It looks like Cuban’s lofty appraisal of the team might come far short of what the team goes for. Robert Kovacik of NBC Los Angeles is reporting that Sterling’s lawyers claim to have received offers in excess of $2.5 billion.

It is important to note the use of the plural, offers. Not one, but more than one offer of more than $2.5 billion.

One of the interested parties is Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, according to a report from the TMZ report:

"Shelly Sterling will meet with former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer Sunday afternoon … and the subject of the meeting is selling the Clippers … TMZ Sports has learned."

And he is just one of many names and groups connected to the team and reportedly interested in buying it. There is the group consisting of former NBA All-Star Grant Hill and billionaire investors and longtime Southern California residents Tony Ressler and Bruce Karsh. Not to mention the power group of David Geffen, Oprah Winfrey and Larry Ellison.