The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league`s Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The Clippers play their home games at the Staples Center, an arena shared with the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA, the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women`s National Basketball Association (WNBA), and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). The franchise was founded in 1970 as the Buffalo Braves, one of three expansion teams to join the NBA that year. The Braves moved from Buffalo, New York to San Diego, California in 1978.