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LOS ANGELES, CA – FEBRUARY 19: TV news correspondent Willow Bay (L) and The Walt Disney Company president and CEO Robert Iger with their childen pose at NBA All-Star Saturday night presented by State Farm at Staples Center on February 19, 2011 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Before Bob Iger agreed to help buy the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a>, he made a confession to the man who would eventually coach them.<\/p>\n \u201cI am a Clippers<\/a> fan,\u201d Iger told JJ Redick<\/a> during a January 2021 appearance on The Old Man and the Three<\/a> podcast.<\/p>\n The old interview resurfaced Wednesday after Iger and Josh Kushner agreed to purchase<\/a> the Lakers from Mark Walter in a deal valuing the franchise at $12.5 billion. The proposed sale<\/a>, which requires approval from the NBA\u2019s Board of Governors, would give a longtime Clippers supporter a leading role with their crosstown rival.<\/p>\n Redick, then nearing the end of his playing career and more than three years away from becoming Lakers coach, introduced Iger by recalling a familiar courtside presence.<\/p>\n \u201cBob is a Clippers fan, and he was sitting courtside for nearly every home game during my four years in L.A.,\u201d Redick said.<\/p>\n Iger didn\u2019t dispute it. He explained it.<\/p>\n Why Bob Iger Chose Clippers Over Lakers<\/p>\n Iger grew up in New York as a Knicks<\/a> fan before moving to Los Angeles in 2000. The Lakers were not merely another team then. They were an old rival he couldn\u2019t easily embrace.<\/p>\n \u201cIn my youth, the Lakers were a big rival of the Knicks, the team that I grew up rooting for,\u201d Iger said. \u201cAnd so I couldn\u2019t root for the Lakers very easily. It just was not in my DNA.\u201d<\/p>\n The Clippers offered an alternative and a more affordable one.<\/p>\n \u201cI decided to adopt the Clippers, which was actually a good thing because their seats were a lot cheaper than the Lakers,\u201d Iger said.<\/p>\n He arrived during the Corey Maggette era and watched the franchise evolve through Cuttino Mobley, Blake Griffin<\/a>, DeAndre Jordan<\/a> and Chris Paul<\/a>. His connection with Paul developed into a close friendship and mentorship that later helped the NBA<\/a> navigate its pandemic restart at Walt Disney World in 2020.<\/p>\n Redick witnessed Iger\u2019s investment in the Clippers firsthand. He played four seasons with them from 2013 to 2017, the height of the \u201cLob City\u201d era, while Iger regularly occupied his courtside seat.<\/p>\n Lakers Deal Creates an Unmistakable Twist<\/p>\n Five years after that podcast conversation, Redick coaches the Lakers and Iger is preparing to become part of their ownership group.<\/p>\n Iger and Kushner initially explored bidding for a prospective NBA expansion franchise in Las Vegas. Instead, they pivoted toward the Lakers and reached an agreement with Walter in roughly 72 hours.<\/p>\n The $12.5 billion figure represents the Lakers\u2019 valuation under the sale agreement, not a disclosed personal contribution from Iger. The complete ownership structure and the size of Iger\u2019s financial stake have not been made public.<\/p>\n Whatever that stake ultimately is, his involvement marks a striking turn in his relationship with the franchise. The former Clippers season-ticket holder who once said rooting for the Lakers was not \u201cin my DNA\u201d is positioned to help oversee them.<\/p>\n Magic Johnson said<\/a> Wednesday that he has known Iger for more than 40 years, describing him as someone who has \u201calways loved the Lakers and basketball.\u201d Iger\u2019s old interview adds texture to that endorsement. He could appreciate the Lakers\u2019 reach and history without rooting for them, particularly after growing up on the other side of the Knicks-Lakers rivalry.<\/p>\n Now that distinction will become much harder to maintain.<\/p>\n The Lakers\u2019 prospective owners said their long-term commitment is to build on the foundation established by Jerry and Jeanie Buss, compete at the highest level and serve Los Angeles. Luka Don\u010di\u0107<\/a> has already said he looks forward to meeting them and beginning that work.<\/p>\n Redick\u2019s role makes the whole thing even more improbable. The former Clippers guard who once asked Iger to explain his allegiance now could be coaching for him under the Lakers banner.<\/p>\n For Iger, changing sides no longer requires overcoming something in his DNA. It requires NBA approval.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tAlder Almo<\/a> is a veteran NBA reporter for Heavy.com, covering the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors. He brings over 20 years of experience across local and international media, including broadcast, print and digital. He previously covered the Knicks for Empire Sports Media and the NBA for Off the Glass. Originally from the Philippines, he is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey. More about Alder Almo<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty LOS ANGELES, CA – FEBRUARY 19: TV news correspondent Willow Bay (L) and The Walt Disney Company…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":810124,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3789],"tags":[7,559,4034,192,4032,251,135,4033,4031,6],"class_list":["post-810123","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles-clippers","tag-basketball","tag-clippers","tag-la","tag-la-clippers","tag-laclippers","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-clippers","tag-losangeles","tag-losangelesclippers","tag-nba"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/117084224489450385","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/810123","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=810123"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/810123\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/810124"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=810123"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=810123"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=810123"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}