The OWN founder joins billionaires David Geffen and Larry Ellison to bid on the Los Angeles Clippers if the disgraced owner agrees to sell it.
- May 1, 2014
AceShowbiz - Oprah Winfrey is one of potential buyers of Los Angeles Clippers after the owner, Donald Sterling, came under fire for making racist comments against black people. The OWN founder joins billionaires David Geffen and Larry Ellison to make a bid for the NBA team if the league votes to force Sterling to sell it.
"Oprah Winfrey is in discussions with David Geffen and Larry Ellison to make a bid for the Los Angeles Clippers should the team become available," her spokesperson Nicole Nichols confirms in a statement.
The former daytime talk show host is one of the stars vocally slamming Sterling over his rant in which he banned his mistress from hanging out with minorities. She said on "CBS This Morning" that the offensive remarks reminded her of "a plantation mentality in the 21st century, in 2014. It just doesn't fit."
Geffen says Oprah "thinks it would be a great thing for an important black American to own [another] franchise. ... The team deserves a better group of owners who want to win." He added, "We've talked about this for a long time. Between the three of us, we have a good shot."
Sterling has been banned for life from the NBA and fined $2.5 million after NBA community strongly reacted to his offensive comments caught on tape during an argument with his girlfriend. In a show of solidarity with Clippers players, basketball stars from other teams staged silent protest during recent games this week.
Players at the Clippers wore black socks and donned their t-shirts inside out during Game 4 against the Warriors on Sunday, April 27. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and the other Miami Heat players did similar thing, removing their warm-up jackets and placing them at midcourt to reveal t-shirts that were turned inside out during a face-off against the Bobcats on Monday.
The disgraced billionaire bought the Clippers in 1981 for $12 million. According an estimate by Forbes, the NBA team is now valued at $575 million.
