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The Clippers have finally escaped from their big brother—at least logistically.
The Intuit Dome, a $2 billion structure in Inglewood, Calif., officially opened Thursday, beginning with two concerts from Bruno Mars. The privately funded arena will be the new home of the Clippers after the team spent the last 25 years sharing Crypto.com Arena, formerly Staples Center, with the Lakers.
Steve Ballmer, the former CEO of Microsoft who is one of the 10 richest people in the U.S., funded the arena with the help of a 23-year naming-rights deal with Intuit worth $500 million. While the state did not pay a single dollar for the arena, Ballmer also pledged $100 million to invest in Inglewood, with $80 million going toward affordable housing.
The Intuit Dome, which Ballmer hopes to make a “basketball mecca,” features electrical outlets at every seat, a double-sided halo board the size of an acre, T-shirt cannons that can target every seat, and perhaps Ballmer’s most famous declaration—a whole lot of toilets and urinals.
“Toilets! 1,160 toilets and urinals, three times the NBA average number of toilets and urinals!” Ballmer said last year. “We do not want people waiting in line. We want them to get back to their damn seats at the end of the half.”
The new arena was part of Ballmer’s vision when he purchased the Clippers in 2014 for $2 billion. At the time, he was criticized for overpaying for the franchise, but the team is now worth $4.65 billion, according to Forbes.
A Clippers Rebirth
When Ballmer acquired the Clippers, the team was in the middle of the best era in franchise history. But the Clippers have struggled to draw attention away from the Lakers in Los Angeles. The NBA team has yet to reach the Finals, while the Lakers boast the second-most titles in league history.
The Clippers’ roster isn’t exactly in the best position as it opens this new arena, with All-Star Paul George departing for the 76ers in free agency, while two-time Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard was replaced on the gold-medal-winning Team USA roster.
But the move to the Intuit Dome at least allows the Clippers to literally separate themselves from the Lakers. The team also launched a rebrand for this season, which means a completely fresh look when they welcome basketball fans to their new arena on Oct. 23 for their preseason homer opener against the Suns.
