Will Floyd Mayweather Jr. Buy Los Angeles Clippers? Boxer Reportedly Interested In NBA Franchise

Shortly after NBA commissioner Adam Silver banned Los Angeles Clipper owner Donald Sterling from the league for life, current undefeated champion and pound-for-pound boxing king Floyd Mayweather Junior expressed interest in purchasing the Western Conference franchise. The five-division world champion – who is preparing to fight Argentine star Marcos Maidana this Saturday at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas – regularly attends Clippers and L.A. Lakers games at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, a big reason why the 37-year-old is intrigued by the possibility of taking ownership of the NBA franchise.

Indicating Tuesday that he has already spoken with personal adviser Al Haymon about the matter, Mayweather Junior said he's begun the process of learning what it will take to become the full-time owner of the Los Angeles Clippers. With the help of Haymon, Golden Boy Promotions chief executive Richard Schaefer and Mayweather Promotions chief exec Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather hopes something constructive comes from these early talks, with the end result leading to him becoming the next owner of the franchise.

“I called Al today about that to see if me, Leonard and Al, and hopefully Richard and a couple of other guys, a couple other of my billionaire guys, we can come together and see what we can come up with," Mayweather said. "Hopefully, we can do it, and it's not just talk. With me, I can't come in talking about Mayweather only gonna get 3 percent, 4 percent. I got to get a solid percentage. Do we want to buy the Clippers? Yes, we do. We are very, very interested in buying the Clippers. We'll keep the Clippers right where they're at. When I'm not boxing, I'm at the games all the time. We do want to buy the Clippers. Me and my team do want to buy the Clippers and we can afford the Clippers.”

Embattled owner Donald Sterling was banned for life after racist comments he made went public late last week, leaving many to believe that the Clippers franchise will soon be up for sale. Though Sterling may be forced to sell his franchise, Mayweather Junior says he feels no ill will toward the man who preached despicable racial comments recently.

“Donald Sterling, he's been getting a lot of negative press, and my thing is this, I don't have nothing negative to say about this guy," Mayweather said. "He's always treated me with the utmost respect. He has always invited me to games. Always. Has always told me, 'Floyd, I want you to sit right next to me and my wife.' I don't know about the alleged mistress. But I'm talking about him and the wife.”

While Mayweather's interest has captured the attention of the sports world, former boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya recently said that he is also exploring the possibility of purchasing the franchise if and when it becomes available.