Former Microsoft Exec Steve Ballmer To Pay $2 Billion For Clippers

According to the Los Angeles Times, former Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer is set to buy the Los Angeles Clippers from the Sterling family. Ballmer was the winner of bitting war with several other protective buyers, with $2 billion being the final record-setting price.

That’s apparently the going rate for professional sports franchises in Los Angeles—the Dodgers sold for $2.1 billion in 2012. Compare that to the price paid for the Milwaukee Bucks earlier this month, which sold for $550 million.

The deal, which was negotiated by Shelly Sterling, will need to be approved by the other 29 NBA owners, but that isn’t expected to be an obstacle. What is not yet known is what, if any, say Donald Sterling will have from this point forward.

Reports have been conflicting. The LA Times said the prospective sale will not become official until Donald Sterling signs off on the deal. But according to USA Today, Sterling has been deemed mentally unfit to make decisions about the family trust—that per an anonymous source.

Apparently Mrs. Sterling pushed hard for the sale in recent weeks, hoping to have a buyer for the team prior to the NBA’s scheduled meeting regarding terminating her husband’s ownership. A very smart move, considering the writing on the wall.