Fansided

Every NBA team’s most famous fan

By Dylan Hughes

LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 06: American actor Jack Nicholson attends the game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves with his son Ray Nicholson at Staples Center on April 6, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 06: American actor Jack Nicholson attends the game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves with his son Ray Nicholson at Staples Center on April 6, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) /
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LOS ANGELES, CA – FEBRUARY 28: Actor Billy Crystal (R) attends a basketball game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Houston Rockets at Staples Center on February 28, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – FEBRUARY 28: Actor Billy Crystal (R) attends a basketball game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Houston Rockets at Staples Center on February 28, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images) /

Los Angeles Clippers — Billy Crystal

Billy Crystal, born in New York, has been a Clippers fan for well over 20 years. Up until the early 2010s, the Clippers were bad for almost all of that time.

So what turned Crystal into such a huge fan? If he was going to pick an LA team, why not the Lakers.

Back in 2012, Crystal sat down with Larry King to talk his Clipper fandom.

Crystal joked to start, saying “They asked me to play. ‘We only got four guys tonight. Can you still dribble?’”

Crystal went on to say that he had Lakers tickets for a while and they were great, but there was no challenge. A friend then asked if he wanted to go see the Clippers play and Crystal reluctantly agreed.

“There was nobody there. A triple-double meant there were three couples in the audience.”

That was back when the Clippers were actually located in San Diego, which was in the early 1980s.

“We just sort of liked the minor league feeling of it, in the best way,” Crystal said. “We weren’t good, but they played hard and the fans were very loyal.”

Crystal even remarked on old Clippers owner Donald Sterling, saying that Sterling would consult Crystal on trades. Crystal responded with, of course, “What are you calling me for?”

For Crystal to invest himself into those bad Clippers teams over the years, it really says a lot about his character as a basketball fan. He could have taken the easy ride to titles by rooting for the Lakers. But Crystal sided with the scrappy underdogs.

Hopefully Crystal will be rewarded with a championship in his lifetime after decades suffering as a fan of the Clippers.

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