Steve Ballmer likes taking shots at two things: Apple products and the Los Angeles Lakers fan base. This week saw him get in a bit more of the latter.
The LA Clippers owner spoke on Friday with Bill Plaschke of the LA Times and took a few digs at Laker fans.
“Why did so many in the town cheer against us?” said Ballmer. “At some points, it gets like this. For a long time the Clippers were nothing, so nobody had to pay attention. For people who had been Lakers fans forever, there’s no threat. We’ll, we’ve gotten pretty good. We’re actually serious. You can see we’re serious. We’re not the old screwed-up franchise in town. We’re getting our act together. I think because we’re getting our act together, it gets people like, ‘C’mon, you can’t get your act together. It’s just my team. My team is the only one that matters!’
“I have been surprised by animus from Lakers fans,” Ballmer added. “My message has sort of been, “Why, you don’t have enough confidence in your guys? There are 29 other teams you have to beat to win a championship. But you must be pretty worried about us. The Lakers are a great organization, a great franchise. But Laker fans, you must be a little worried about us.”
The last couple of years have marked perhaps the first time in NBA history that both the Lakers and Clippers have been contenders at the same time. As such, it has become apparent that Laker fans care more about the Clippers than they care to admit. Many of them were extremely mad online when the Clippers broke ground on their new state-of-the-art arena in Inglewood, Calif., and some even cheered Kawhi Leonard’s injury last postseason.
Los Angeles has always been a Lakers town, but the Clippers moving to their own arena will help them finally get out of the Lakers’ shadow. Ballmer can sense the shifting power balance as well, which is why he has gotten in shots at the Lakers before.
More must-reads: