The NBA season starts tonight in SoCal, with the Lakers playing the Jazz in Anacrime in a preseason money grab game. Up the 5 Freeway this afternoon, the Clippers, like most of us at the moment, are tightening their financial belt by eliminating the NBA’s only million-dollar mascot (wait, the Phoenix Suns Gorilla makes what?!!).

Team GM Elgin Baylor was cut loose by club owner Donald Sterling, and he’s none to happy about it. Why, I have no idea, as Baylor has been on the free money gravy train for many, many years. He has been the team’s General Manager for the past decade in title only, and had about as much positive impact in the Clips’ court affairs as O.J. Simpson just did in Vegas.

Baylor to the LAT:

“There is a dispute, and on the advice of my attorney they did not want me to discuss it,” Baylor said. “That’s all I can say.”

There’s no truth to the rumor that Baylor has drafted Yale Galanter to make his case in the dispute.

It is kinda sad though that Baylor, who has his former Laker #23 hanging in the Staples Center rafters, won’t be around for Clips games this season. He was a fun, elder statesman type. And a pretty good dude, at least in my dealings with him. And most importantly, symbolic of the lovably futile nature of the NBA’s saddest sack franchise.

But that won’t stop me from hittin’ it with the Clips this season, and My Boy Barry has more season tickets for Clippers and Lakers than anyone on the planet. Including preseason.

So here in L.A., we’re all waiting for the Jojers and Fightin’ Phils to crank it up on Thursday. Today on local sports talk radio, there was a lot of crowing going on by Dodgers fans as they happily dumped on the fallen Angels. Out of that discussion, I heard the first funny thing come out of Tommy Lasorda’s mouth (kinda) since he claimed he didn’t patronize prostitutes.

Lasorda once said about the absurd “Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim” name, as relayed by Steve Hartman on KLAC-AM, that “the only Angels in Los Angeles are dead Dodgers.”

So does that make Brad Penny’s right arm eligible?