Dunleavy Awarded $13 Million From Clippers

An arbitrator has awarded former Los Angeles Clippers head coach Mike Dunleavy $13 million. Dunleavy also served as the team's general manager during his tenure.

In a move typical of the Clippers and owner Donald Sterling, the Clippers stopped paying Dunleavy after they fired him last March. He had been owed $6.75 million on the contract, $1.35 million for the remainder of the 2009-10 season and $5.4 million for the season just completed.

Finally Sterling gets his comeuppance. After years of being notoriously cheap, he gets told to cough up $13 million. Of course this isn't the first time that Sterling quit paying an employee. He had a similar suit against former coach Bill Fitch, saying he hadn't been trying to get another job. He also had a wrongful termination suit, filed by former GM Elgin Baylor, rejected by a Los Angeles jury. Is he an NBA owner or Scrooge McDuck.

Dunleavy's attorney, Miles Clement seemed happy with the outcome of the case. "It was a good day", said Clements. Ice Cube couldnt've said it better.

Of course the firm handling the case for the Clippers didn't seem too enthused with the decision.

"We do not agree with the arbitrator's decision," said Clippers general counsel Robert H. Platt, a partner at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips. "We intend to review the decision carefully and explore the team's various options."


The Clippers and Sterling need to get over it and pony up that $13 million to Dunleavy.