It is not even clear yet if the NBA will be able to force Donald Sterling to sell the Los Angeles Clippers, and yet some big names such as such as Magic Johnson and Diddy are already positioning themselves to purchase the team and the chart below shows why.
Sterling purchased the Clippers in 1981 for just $12.5 million. In the first year of Forbes’ NBA valuations (1998-99), the Clippers were valued at $102 million. Since then the team has grown in value to $575 million, with some speculating that the team could be sold for $1 billion.
Still, the cross-town Lakers are still more than twice as valuable as the Clippers according to the Forbes valuations. That is a lot of room for growth for the Clippers, a team in a huge sports market.
Historically, L.A. has been a Lakers town. Yet, they have struggled recently and the Clippers are a team on the way up. If they can grab hold of the heart of L.A. the difference in values could shrink quickly, a growth in value Sterling may never get to enjoy.
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