BY: ROBERT MORALES – SPORTS ON AIR USA CONTRIBUTOR
LOS ANGELES — The most talked about arena in sports in the past 12 months was officially unraveled on Wednesdat night when the Los Angeles Clippers hosted Kevin Durant and the Pheonix Suns at a place they will call home for years to come.
The Intuit Dome.
The two-billion dollar structure, which broke ground three years ago, is a sprawling complex that will host the basketball event of the 2028 Summer Olympics. It will also hosts concerts as Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga did in their “Die With A Smile” duet last August.
Between now, and hopefully through June, however, the Dome will mainly be the Clippers’ nest where they will host 41 home games and the playoffs, assuming they get there.
Before billionaire team owner Steve Ballmer erected his own arena in suburban Inglewood, the Clippers plied their trade at Crypto.com, formerly Staples Center, where they were co-tenants with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Lathered with all the amenities of modern technology, the Intuit Dome has two prominent features.
One is The Wall, 51 uninterrupted rows where the first 13 are occupied by the most diehard fans who sit and cheer all game long including distracting free throw shooters. It’s an innovation Durant called “crazy” in a good way after he missed two straight free throws the first time he faced The Wall.
The other treat is “a high-tech 4K Halo board described as the “largest double-sided halo display in an arena setting, and almost a full acre long.”
“Welcome home, Clipper Nation!” Ballmer told fans during the season opener.
Indeed, what a wondrful place to call home.
