LACLos Angeles Clippers

Franchise history

The franchise began in 1970 as the Buffalo Braves, an NBA expansion team built around Hall of Famer Bob McAdoo that reached the playoffs three times in eight seasons. Financial troubles drove a move to San Diego in 1978 as the San Diego Clippers, and a further relocation to Los Angeles followed in 1984 under new owner Donald Sterling. What came next was one of the longest stretches of dysfunction in American pro sports: three decades of losing seasons, a 12-70 finish in 1987, and a string of high draft picks — Michael Olowokandi chief among them — who never turned into sustained success.

The 2011 acquisition of Chris Paul, paired with Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan, launched the "Lob City" era: six straight playoff berths and two division titles from 2012 to 2017, though the team never advanced past the conference semifinals. In April 2014, leaked recordings of racist remarks by Sterling led to a lifetime NBA ban and a forced sale; Steve Ballmer bought the franchise for $2 billion that August. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George arrived in 2019, and in 2021 the Clippers reached the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history, losing to Phoenix. The team opened its own arena, Intuit Dome, in Inglewood for the 2024-25 season. Despite that progress, the Clippers remain the oldest franchise in major North American pro sports never to have played in a championship series.

Sources

• Los Angeles Clippers — Wikipedia
• Buffalo Braves — Wikipedia
• Oldest teams to never reach a championship — ESPN