There was a fun little concept piece in the Ventura County Star this weekend (registration required). For the question, "Can the Clipper's Become LA's Favorite NBA Team?" Keith Kropp took the Pro position and Jim Carlisle took the Con position.
It's all a little premature of course. Are the Clippers the better and more entertaining team? Well, duh. But LA will be a Lakers town FOREVER, and the Clippers will not really be a close second until they win a title. Which is pretty much fine with Clippers fans. Tickets don't cost as much, and you can usually buy them. These are good things.
Look no further than MLB for an example of a team that did succeed in stepping out of a shadow. For YEARS the Angels were kept off the front page of the LA Times, even when they were just as competitive as the Dodgers (sound familiar, Clipper Nation?) And this is compared to the Dodgers, who have a nice legacy, but nothing compared to the Lakers. One World Series victory later, the Angels are a Southland equal.
The writers' knowledge of the subject matter left a little to be desired, I must say. Carlisle listed Penny Marshall on the Lakers star power ledger (she's a bigger Clippers fan, though she goes to all the games for each team), and claimed that