The Clippers last night teamed up with a non-profit health center to "stage a blood drive on the suite level" of Staples Center to help address the "most pressing needs" of the local community following the Thousand Oaks shooting, according to Mirjam Swanson of the ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER. The Clippers and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center staged the drive from 6:00pm PT through halftime of the game against the Warriors, and fans who gave blood "got a pair of tickets to see the Clippers take on either" the Kings, Hornets or Suns this season. To "raise money to support the families of those affected by the shooting, the Clippers on Sunday also started selling the 'ENOUGH' T-shirts" that they and the Bucks wore before their game on Saturday. The shirts are on sale for $19.99 at the Clippers' website, with the "entirety of the net proceeds being directed to the Ventura County Community Foundation." PA announcer Eric Smith said the Clippers are "using their collective voice right now to tell the world that gun violence is never OK.” Coach Doc Rivers said, "I was probably as proud of this franchise as I’ve been since I’ve been here. Because instead of doing a moment of silence and saying nothing, we said something. We wore something, and more importantly, we spoke about it." Warriors coach Steve Kerr "commended the Clippers -- and the NBA -- for supporting that stand" (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 11/13).
Kings players wore helmets and held signs with the message "ENOUGH" after the Thousand Oaks shootingNATHAN THOMPSON
TAKING A STAND: In L.A., Helene Elliott writes the NHL Kings having "ENOUGH" written on their helmets last Thursday "wasn't politically motivated." It was "visceral," born of the family of late team employee Chrissy Duarte's "anguish and of having been asked, as if it were normal, to provide trauma kits to South Bay schools for use in classroom shootings." Duarte, a former fan service associate, was killed in the Las Vegas shooting last year. Kings Senior VP/Marketing, Communications & Content Michael Altieri said, "It was a behavioral statement. It's behavior that we want to impact, and the behavior of someone choosing to take another person's life. These things can't be accepted." The Kings "won't let" the Thousand Oaks tragedy "be forgotten." Team staff yesterday met to discuss "follow-up efforts and they plan to exchange ideas with every other local team." Kings President Luc Robitaille "hopes fans will be swayed when they see athletes speak out against violence." He said, "I would rather try to do something than do nothing, than just have a moment of silence and move on" (L.A. TIMES, 11/13).
