The Dog Days of the LA Clippers are over thanks to Steve Ballmer

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 07: Head coach Doc Rivers (L) and owner Steve Ballmer of the LA Clippers pose on the court before a game between the Clippers and the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2019 NBA Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 7, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. 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 Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 07: Head coach Doc Rivers (L) and owner Steve Ballmer of the LA Clippers pose on the court before a game between the Clippers and the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2019 NBA Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 7, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. 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 Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
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LOS ANGELES, CA – NOVEMBER 15: Jerry West and Steve Ballmer of the LA Clippers talk before the game against the San Antonio Spurs at STAPLES Center on November 15, 2018 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. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – NOVEMBER 15: Jerry West and Steve Ballmer of the LA Clippers talk before the game against the San Antonio Spurs at STAPLES Center on November 15, 2018 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. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)

Front Office/Team Management

As of today, the LA Clippers have one the league’s deepest front-offices and most widely respected around the league.

You can probably tell that this group knows how to work in silence, as mostly all moves the team has made over the past seasons have not been leaked.

Let’s go through and see how Ballmer has changed this Front-Office, top to bottom.

2014-2015

  • Ballmer hires the first top-female executive in Gillian Zucker, who is the team’s President of Business Operations

2015-2016

  • Ballmer strips Head Coach Doc Rivers of President of Basketball Operations but convinces him to stay as coach
  • Lawrence Frank is named Executive Vice President Of Basketball Operations

2016-2017

  • Ballmer hires Jerry West from the Golden State Warriors to become a team consultant
  • Ballmer also hires Cavs assistant GM Trent Redden, Knicks assistant GM Mark Hughes and Thunder assistant GM Michael Winger

2017-2018

  • Ballmer creates a player’s lounge in the team’s practice facility where players can relax, get treatment and get a healthy meal prepared by Team Chef Priscilla Martinez

2018-2019

  • Ballmer hires Sports Illustrated writer Lee Jenkins to become the team’s Executive Director of Research and Identity.
  • Ballmer gives Head Coach Doc Rivers and Consultant Jerry West extensions
  • Trent Redden and Michael Winger get offered promotions elsewhere but choose to stay
  • Ballmer is renovating the Clipper’s Practice Facility to become more state of the art