NBA Rumors: Clippers could be moving out of Los Angeles

ESPN is reporting that the Los Angeles Clippers are actively exploring options for a new arena.

Since the Los Angeles Lakers moved to the Staples Center in 1999, they’ve had to share it with the Los Angeles Clippers. That has led to plenty points of controversy between the two teams, such as the number of Lakers fans who show up when they play the Clippers “on the road, and Billy Crystal’s attempt to take up the mantle as the Clippers’ celebrity superfan in the same vein as Jack Nicholson.

But now, after 16 long years, it appears the owners are going to try and move the Clippers out of the Staples Center. It has been reported that the Clippers are actively looking for new arenas, and could potentially move out of Los Angeles altogether:

The Clippers have played outside of LA before, spending time in San Diego and Anaheim when they were still coming into their own as a franchise.

But even though the Clippers are a much improved team, in the time that they’ve spent at the Staples Center, every team in the city but the Clippers has won. The Lakers won five titles, the LA Kings won two Stanley Cups … hell, even the LA Sparks won two championships before the Clippers did.

Perhaps the Clippers and new owner Steve Ballmer were getting tired of seeing banners that didn’t belong to their team, and decided that a change of scenery was best for them. Having two teams in the same league occupy the same building is problematic anyway, so having an arena dedicated solely to the Clippers can only be good for them. However, if they remain in close proximity to the other California teams, they should still expect a large contingent of away fans.