How does he do it? Night in and night out Clipper Darrell, real name, Darrell Bailey, a 42 year old man dressed in Clippers red and blue, keeps dancing and shouting encouragement to one of the worst franchises in NBA history.
Today, Thursday May 27 at 3 pm, he will lead a parade in downtown Los Angeles to rally support for the Clippers, to somehow entice LeBron James into considering a move to the ugly step-sister of NBA teams in LA.
It is game day for the Lakers vs. Suns as they play the fifth game of their Western Conference Finals series, so the area near where the parade is expected to begin will have some buzz around it.
It's already been a busy day for Bailey who appeared live on ESPN-2's morning program, "First Take", along with multiple radio interviews.
Appearing on 710 KSPN with Lakers broadcaster Mychal Thompson and on-air partner Andrew Siciliano, Clipper Darrell insisted that not only does LeBron knows about the parade but he believes that there is a personal connection between the two of them.
At some point when LeBron James was in town, Bailey and he ended up at the same club where he got LeBron to laugh and participate in a bit of the fun schtick that is his trademark.
In 1969, the New York Mets' slogan was "Ya, Gotta Believe". They went from a joke of a franchise to World Champions that season.
Who is to say it can't happen to the team that Donald Sterling has owned and managed into a place that people fear being traded?
Uh, I think most would say it is, if not impossible one of the most improbable events you'd live to see in your sports life.
But that doesn't deter Clipper Darrell who in his heart of hearts must know this isn't going to draw well. It will be interesting to see if more people appear for the LeBron rally-parade than showed up to protest Phil Jackson's remarks about the Arizona immigration legislation. Slideshow and story about that, right here.
The man is a fixture in the Los Angeles sports scene who while merely a fan and season-ticket holder, represents all fans who haven't become jaded.
He roots for a team that seems to shoot itself in the foot, even when it means well. He loves a team that has a black cloud hanging over it when it comes to injuries.
He represents fans like ESPN's Bill Simmons who won't give up the love or the tickets and just hope for the best, year after year.
I'm almost ashamed I'm not showing up for him, since if we lose guys like Clipper Darrell, the world is a darker and less friendly place.
Hey, LeBron, give this guy a shout-out, at least via social media (twitter.com/clipperdarrell) will you?
Clipper Darrell on MySpace FOLLOW MY DAILY UPDATES ON TWITTER
Joseph Mael covers the Clippers for Examiner.com, here
Comments
the article is remiss for failing to mention that radio LEGEND big ben maller was among the 75 in attendance
Thanks John, this was written prior to the parade, so appreciate the morning after report.
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