National Basketball Association (1978-1984)
Tombstone
Born: July 7, 1978 – The Buffalo Braves relocate to San Diego1NBA Approves Transfer of Braves, AP via The Press Courier, Jul. 8, 1978
Moved: May 15, 1984 (Los Angeles Clippers)2Clippers Move to LA, UPI via Mid Cities Daily News, Mar. 16, 1984
First Game: October 13, 1978 (L 128-114 @ Phoenix Suns)
Last Game: April 14, 1984 (W 146-128 vs. Utah Jazz)
NBA Championships: None
Arena
San Diego Sports Arena (13,841)
Opened: November 17, 19663No Place Like Home For Gulls, The Vancouver Sun, Nov. 18, 1966
Marketing
Team Colors:4TruColor.net
1978-1983: Sky blue, burnt orange, and white
1983-1984: Blue, red, and white
Ownership
Owners:
- 1978-1981: Irv Levin
- 1981-1984: Donald Sterling
Our Favorite Gear
San Diego Throwback
Replica Jersey
When it comes to Replica Jerseys, we turn to our friends at Royal Retros, who put extraordinary detail into their fully customizable hockey sweaters.
Free Customization Included
Each jersey individually handmade
Any name and number
Sewn tackle twill crest, numbers & letters
100% polyester
Custom Labels Available
When you make a purchase through an affiliate link like this one, Fun While It Lasted earns a commission at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support!
Background
The San Diego Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) were established in 1978, when the Buffalo Braves moved to Southern California. It wasn’t a simple relocation, though, as the shift also involved two NBA owners swapping teams.
Before the move, Irv Levin, a Los Angeles-based film magnate, owned the Boston Celtics. He acquired the team in 1975. The Buffalo Braves were owned by John Y. Brown, who purchased the team after his Kentucky Colonels of the American Basketball Association (ABA) were excluded from the 1976 NBA/ABA merger.
NBA owners swap teams
Brown and his Braves co-owner, Harry Mangurian, acquired the Celtics. Levin assumed control of the Braves and immediately requested permission from the NBA to move the team to San Diego, something the league would not have allowed the Celtics to do.5NBA Approves Transfer of Braves, AP via The Press-Courier, Jul. 8, 1978 A single vote was held on the ownership swap and the relocation, with the deal being approved 21-1 by the other owners. Commissioner Larry O’Brien would not reveal who voted against it.
Braves become Clippers
A month later, on August 8, the team announced that it would be known as the San Diego Clippers.6It’s the San Diego Clippers, AP via The Lewiston Morning Journal, Aug. 9, 1978 The city had previously hosted the NBA’s San Diego Rockets from 1967 to 1971, when they moved to Houston. The ABA’s San Diego Conquistadors called the city home for three seasons starting in 1972, before changing their name to the Sails. They sank 11 games into the 1975-76 season.
After the Braves’ move west, the league realigned its divisions, with the Clippers being placed in the Pacific with the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Phoenix Suns, Portland Trailblazers, and Seattle SuperSonics.
In their first season in San Diego, the team posted a record of 43-39, a big improvement over the 27-55 finish in Buffalo the previous season, though only three players remained from the Braves roster. The Clippers were led by the legendary World B. Free, who arrived from the Philadelphia 76ers via a trade, as well as Kermit Washington. Unfortunately, they missed the playoffs by just two games.
The following season saw the arrival of another legend, Bill Walton, just two years on from leading the Portland Trail Blazers to an NBA championship. He, however, missed 68 games and the team fell to 35-47, but again came within two games of making the playoffs. Two other notable additions to the team included former Cleveland Cavalier Bobby “Bingo” Smith and notorious former ABA legend “Marvelous” Marvin Barnes (The Spirits of St. Louis).
Walton missed the entire 1980-81 campaign while the team improved by one game over the previous season. Attendance, meanwhile, cratered. The Clippers were 21st out of 23 teams in that category.
Donald Sterling buys San Diego Clippers
On May 4, 1981, Levin sold the team to Los Angeles-based real estate developer Donald Sterling.7San Diego Clippers sold, UPI via The Lodi News-Sentinel, May 5, 1981 The Clippers soon sailed into a sea of red ink. As it turned out, Sterling was, at best, a cheapskate and, at worst, a deadbeat who didn’t pay the team’s bills.8Tales of penny-pinching and unpaid bills by owner Donald Sterling illustrated unprecedented era, The San Diego Union-Tribune, Dec. 30, 2019On the court, the team was once again without the services of Bill Walton, and they dribbled to a 17-65 record.
Sterling, meanwhile, longed to have the Clippers in his hometown even if they would be playing second fiddle to the very popular and very successful Lakers. He announced a move up the 5 on June 7, 1982, even though he did not have league approval to relocate the team.9Are there enough fans in LA for two NBA teams? AP via The Eugene Register-Guard, Jun. 8, 1982 After reviewing the request for several weeks, the NBA Board of Governors put the kibosh on the move.10Clippers to stay in San Diego, AP via The Times News, Ju. 2, 1982 They cited Sterling’s mismanagement of the team as one of the reasons. The new owner gave up, at least temporarily, on moving the team.11Clippers won’t be moving, AP via The Lewiston Morning Tribune, Sep. 11, 1982
At one point, Sterling floated the idea of selling the team, and to that end, gave power of attorney to Alan Rothenberg, who took over day-to-day operations. He had tons of front office experience in professional soccer, and the league was relieved to have him running the franchise on Sterling’s behalf, unaware that Rothenberg was going to help the controversial owner fulfill his wish of moving the team to L.A.
Clippers move to L.A.
After lying low in San Diego for two more seasons, and emboldened by the relocation of the NFL’s Oakland Raiders to L.A., the Clippers bolted. On May 15, 1984, a hastily-packed U-Haul moving van containing the team’s gear, office furniture, and other belongings motored up the 5 freeway. Not everyone in the organization was tipped off, as several front office employees showed up to work in San Diego the next morning, only to find an empty office. Bill Walton read about the move in the newspaper.12Tales of penny-pinching and unpaid bills by owner Donald Sterling illustrated unprecedented era, The San Diego Union-Tribune, Dec. 30, 2019
Oddly, Rothenberg told the press after arriving in the parking lot of the L.A. Sports Arena that he had met with NBA officials the night before, and that he encountered no opposition from either the NBA or Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss.13Clippers Move to LA, UPI via Mid Cities Daily News, Mar. 16, 1984
While it was true that Buss had no complaints, lawsuits nonetheless followed, with both the NBA and the San Diego Sports Arena suing Sterling and the Clippers. However, with the Raiders’ success against the NFL in regard to that team’s move to L.A., Sterling and Rothenberg felt they were in a pretty comfortable position. The involved parties settled out of court, and the Clippers have been in L.A. ever since.
San Diego Clippers Video
World B. Free lights up the L.A. Lakers for 46 points at the San Diego Sports Arena. October 12, 1979
In Memoriam
Original Clippers owner Irv Levin passed away March 20, 1996 at age 74.
Guard Phil Smith (Clippers ’80-’82) died of cancer on July 29, 2002. Smith was 50 years old.
Guard Randy Smith, who averaged 20.5 points for the 1978-79 Clips, suffered a fatal heart attack on June 4, 2009.
Links
National Basketball Association Programs
##