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Clippers owner fires strong warning at Lakers fans: ‘You must be a little worried about us’

Published by
Brad Sullivan

Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer stoked the fires of the intracity rivalry with the Los Angeles Lakers by saying that Lakers fans must be worried about his team, given their animosity.

Ballmer’s remarks during an interview with the Los Angeles Times will no doubt get noticed by not only the Lakers fan base, but the team’s front office as well.

“I have been surprised by animus from Lakers fans, and my message has sort of been, why, you don’t have enough confidence in your guys?” Ballmer said. “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.”

It’s unclear why Ballmer believes that Lakers fans would be worried about the Clippers, given the fact that the Lakers’ rivals have been disappointments during the past two postseasons.

In each of those cases, the Clippers have been considered to be championship contenders. However, they were unable to reach the NBA Finals in both postseasons.

Contrasting that failure, the Lakers managed to win the 2020 NBA title, though they saw their dreams of back-to-back championships end last season because of key injuries.

Both teams will again be strong contenders to capture the Western Conference title this season, but the Clippers have to get past the burden of having failed to meet expectations in previous seasons.

Ballmer’s comments put even more pressure on his team as training camps begin to open and will no doubt be recalled all season long.

Brad Sullivan

Brad is a freelance writer for LakersDaily.com, who can clearly recall watching Lakers games in 1972 as they captured the first of their 11 Los Angeles-based titles. The franchise's evolution into a beloved and iconic franchise among its fan base since that memorable year allows for a wider perspective to be a part of his writing about the team's current fortunes.

Published by
Brad Sullivan

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