Get All Access for $5/mo

Steve Ballmer's Next 'Window' of Opportunity: L.A. Clippers Owner If the $2 billion deal is approved by the NBA, it would mark a brand new chapter for the former Microsoft CEO.

By Geoff Weiss

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

In recent decades, ownership of a professional sports team has gradually transitioned from vanity side project into the veritable business arena. Just look at serial entrepreneur Mark Cuban's purchase of the Dallas Mavericks, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen scooping up the Portland Trailblazers or Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert buying the Cleveland Cavaliers.

So after a racial scandal involving Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling last month precipitated that team's sale, there has inarguably been no hotter athletic property on the market.

Until now.

Following a loud proliferation of bids -- from Oprah Winfrey and Sean Combs, among others -- former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has reportedly struck a deal to purchase the Clippers for $2 billion. That price marks an astonishing increase over the $12.5 million Sterling paid to acquire the team in 1981.

Related: Steve Ballmer's Most Awkwardly Hilarious Moments

Sterling's wife, Shelly, announced the sale after inking a pact with Ballmer yesterday just before midnight. She did so as the just-named sole trustee of the Sterling family estate, after her husband "was found by experts to be mentally incapacitated," reports ESPN.

At the same time, however, attorneys for Donald Sterling told the outlet that a sale could not proceed without his consent.

The deal was allegedly fast tracked by Shelly Sterling and Ballmer in order to predate a meeting with the NBA's board of governors scheduled for next Tuesday, in which the Sterling family's ownership of the Clippers could be entirely terminated.

However, the NBA league office must still ratify the sale, and Ballmer must be approved by three-fourths of the league's owners, reports ESPN.

The messy ordeal smacks of a similar franchise sale almost exactly two years ago, when Frank McCourt divested his Los Angeles Dodgers to the Guggenheim group, also for $2 billion. Not unlike Sterling, McCourt was forced to sell the team after he took it into bankruptcy following a nasty divorce.

Related: Ballmer Reminisces, Advises in First Appearance Since Exiting Microsoft

Geoff Weiss

Former Staff Writer

Geoff Weiss is a former staff writer at Entrepreneur.com.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Side Hustle

The Side Hustle He Started in His College Apartment Turned Into a $70,000-a-Month Income Stream — Then Earned Nearly $2 Million Last Year

Kyle Morrand and his college roommates loved playing retro video games — and the pastime would help launch his career.

Business News

A Former Corporate Lawyer Now Makes Six Figures on YouTube — Here's How She Does It

Here are the secrets to starting and growing a successful YouTube channel, according to a YouTuber with millions of subscribers.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Growing a Business

How to Determine The Ideal Length of Your Marketing Emails Your Customers Will Actually Read

Wondering how long your marketing emails should be? Here's what consumers say — so you can send them exactly what they like.

Business News

Y Combinator Helped Launch Reddit, Airbnb and Dropbox. Here's What I Learned From Its Free Startup School.

The famed startup accelerator offers a free course on building a business — and answers five pressing questions for founders.