How the Braves Became Clippers

This article was written by Phin Upham

Back in 1970, still reeling from the Celtic upset of the Lakers in 1969, the Buffalo Braves were lacing up for their debut season in the NBA. They were one of three expansions to the league that occurred in the 70-71 season. The team even played some games in Ontario, in the same stadium as the Toronto Maple Leafs, in the hopes of attracting fans outside of the USA.

Early on, the Braves made some interesting choices. They hired hall of famer Dolph Schayes to manage the team, and they passed on Calvin Murphy. Murphy, who would go on to play for the San Diego and then Houston Rockets, would eventually land himself into the NBAs hall of fame.

When the city of San Diego lost the Rockets, they began looking at teams they could buy. They settled on the Braves, but a contest was held to see if they could find a name that better represented the region. Fans chose “Clippers” in reference to the ships that would sail through the ports of San Diego. The team’s first season went quite well, but a series of failures and injuries would leave them starved for a winning season for thirteen years.

In 1981, the team was sold to an intrepid real estate developer and attorney named Donald Sterling. Sterling looked at the poor attendance and record of the team, then he lobbied the NBA to relocate the Clippers to Los Angeles. He’s maintained ownership up since then, but a recent dispute over racist comments has called his ownership into question.