Sterling purchase of the Clippers among top investments in memory

By Dan Burns NEW YORK (Reuters) - Donald Sterling, forced to sell his National Basketball Association team after a lifetime ban for making racist comments, is not going to be remembered as a "visionary," "icon" or "oracle" - terms attached over the years to renowned business personalities such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Warren Buffett. But Sterling's winning bet on the Los Angeles Clippers 33 years ago means he is in their company when it comes to blowout investment returns. Sterling laid out about $12.5 million for the team in 1981, then a perennial basement dweller called the San Diego Clippers. On Thursday, the family trust now in control of the team agreed to sell it for $2 billion to Gates' successor at Microsoft, Steve Ballmer, more three times its estimated value just a month ago.

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