James Loving - National Radio Text Service - Friday, April 30, 2006

A franchise that was branded a loser for life. This years Clippers team is on the verge of turning that negative image around.

CLIPPERS BRANDED

Well it's not what you think. Yes we know the outstanding achievements of LA Clippers forward Elton Brand, BUT… this is about a franchise that was branded a loser for life.

This years Clippers team is on the verge of turning that negative image around. This years Clippers team is demanding… sing it Aretha (Franklin)… R*E*S*P*E*C*T.

In the past, being a Clipper was not that easy. You were usually scorned. There was a cloud of gloom that always hung over their head. Worst of all in Los Angles they were constantly in the shadow of your cross-town rivals…. The Los Angeles Lakers.

When you see the fans and movie stars attending Laker games, in the world of fans, it was like seeing the front row of the Academy Awards. Most everybody that was somebody had to be seen at a Laker game. It was the thing to do if you wanted to be cool or accepted. To be seen at a Clippers game an entertainment star had to have guts. It was almost like wearing the bage of shame.

Actor comedian Billy Crystal should be awarded the Purple Hart. He is the Clippers biggest entertainment star fan. He was seldom NOT in attendance. He was their biggest supporter through thick and thin and it was mostly thin.

Being a Clipper wasn't easy. Excuse me but... to put it into perspective it was like… like… like… Well it was like a person that farted in church and had to sit in their own pew.

They were the ugly duckling of the NBA. They were the targets of numerous Clipper jokes. They were the team that would most likely not to be invited to the party particularly in Los Angeles. WHY? They were and are the Clippers.

Karl Malone once said, "You should never lose to the Clippers."

In 1994 then Clippers reserve forward/guard Harold Ellis was asked how the team was received at parties in LA. Not well was the response noting that they were always in the shadow of Lakers that might be in attendance.

Being a Clipper was like going to jail. Being drafted by the Clippers was like being sentenced to death. The stigma that hung over the franchise seemed everlasting.

When recently elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame Player Dominique Wilkins was traded from the Atlanta Hawks to the Clippers at midseason on February 24, 1994 with a first round draft choice for Danny Manning, he wasn't happy about being a Clipper. He finished out the season and departed as an unrestricted free agent.

Learning and experiencing the Clippers story wasn't by choice, it was by chance.

In making the transition from a print journalist then adding being a radio producer in 1989 I was put in the position of having to come up with a story. That required figuring out what a story was. At that time the entertainment business was my strong point.

The only instructions given, as told to me by the head producer in Dallas Texas, "This is radio and this is a two minute piece. We don't have time to explain who the subject (being interviewed) is. The public must identify the personality by name. The time of the piece must be utilized by telling the story."

That information sent me directly to the Dallas Cowboys training camp then in Thousand Oaks, California. The Cowboys then media director Greg Aiello knew the radio network that I was representing. A press credential was granted and the first story was about newly appointed Dallas coach Jimmy Johnson.

It was the perfect fit since the network had another show specifically about the Cowboys and another on the NFL. The story was used on three different shows and aired on over 900 stations in the USA.

The network then asked… "What do you have next"? At that time there was nothing. There were only a few days to figure it out and turn the story in. As the cartoon depicts a light bulb lit up in my head and...

The LA Summer League then at Loyola University's gym was the place to be since now Basketball Hall of Fame player David Robinson was preparing for his rookie season with the San Antonio Spurs summer league team.

Players, NBA scouts and coaches including then Atlanta Hawks and now Memphis Grizzlies coach Mike Fratello were there to see the NBA's first overall draft pick.

After the game was in progress two Los Angles Clippers came into view. Danny Manning showed up with teammate Charles Smith. They were standing on the sidelines at the corner of the court

Manning had a good story to be told. He was the Clippers first round draft choice the previous season when he suffered an ACL injury after playing in only 21 games in that, his rookie year.

The Clippers had their hopes and future depending on his recovery. What was his status of recovery? When would he return to play? Would he ever return to play?

The timing had to be right to approach him and ask for an interview. I waited and waited and waited. When I looked up he was gone. Now what, I thought. The Clippers story had disappeared!!!

To be continued in our May edition of NBA BEAT.

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