Sources: Ballmer exploring sites for new arena

3:15 PM ET

Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has begun to explore potential sites for a new Clippers arena, multiple NBA sources said.

The Clippers would neither confirm nor deny they are actively searching for a location, but one NBA source said that an area that piques the franchise’s interest is Los Angeles’ westside.

The Clippers have been co-tenants of Staples Center, owned and operated by Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), with the Los Angeles Lakers and the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings since the facility opened in downtown Los Angeles prior to the 1999-2000 NBA season. In January 2013, the Clippers agreed to a 10-year extension of their lease that would keep the team at Staples Center until June 2024. Sources say any move by the Clippers would come after they fulfill the term of the current lease.

A new facility owned and operated by the team would afford the Clippers greater power to maximize earning opportunities, from sponsorship to licensing fees. As the owner of Staples Center, AEG retains control over naming rights, the business operations of running the facility for events and other substantial revenue streams like concessions.

Sources with knowledge of the Clippers’ lease agreement said that, in many regards, the team operates as Staples Center’s “third tenant,” a condition that’s becoming increasingly tiresome to the organization. The Clippers receives a smaller share of proceeds from suites and …

continue reading in source espn.go.com