• World
  • NBA

Ballmer Wanted To Be a Baller Back in High School

1 minute read

Steve Ballmer wished he was a baller, just a little bit taller—now he’s a baller of a different kind, bidding $2 billion for his own NBA team, the Los Angeles Clippers.

Back at Detroit Country Day School, Ballmer wanted to play basketball, but he settled for a management gig instead.

From a Network World piece about Ballmer in 2009:

At age 8, Ballmer was told by his father that he was headed for Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass. He did well in school academically, earning valedictorian honors at Detroit Country Day School. Ballmer also wanted to excel in sports, but ended up being the basketball team’s manager.

Today, Ballmer often escapes from the Microsoft campus on time to play basketball with his sons.

Ballmer won a bidding war Thursday to buy the Clippers.

 

More Must-Reads From TIME

Contact us at letters@time.com