The Wall in Clippers' New Arena: A Different Fan Experience

What is The Wall?
The Wall is a dedicated fan section behind one of the baskets, consisting of 51 rows of seating. It is somewhat reminiscent of college basketball traditions where student sections often play a major role in home-court advantage. The concept is simple yet effective-it allows for fans to engage directly with the game, especially when opponents are shooting free throws. The Clippers hope that a large, raucous crowd will focus in on the people watching instead of on themselves and end up as a home-field advantage.

The Inaugural Game Experience
As the Clippers played their opening game at the Intuit Dome, The Wall could be heard immediately. Post-game, one of the NBA's finest players, the Phoenix Suns' Kevin Durant, had to shoot free throws with a thunderous crowd behind his back, missing two crucial free throws that earned them free Chick-fil-A as part of the game night promotion.

Finally, after the game, Durant spoke about the experience, referring to it as "incredible" and "insane." And again, even though The Wall can always turn the tide of the game, their psychological experience at play does still depend on such a decision .