This weekend, the NBA suffered a damaging blow, when audio tapes were released with the voice of Donald Sterling, owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, spouting racist rhetoric to his girlfriend V. Stiviano. She posted two photos, with Magic Johnson and Matthew Kemp respectively, two African American athletes. He vehemently argued that he didn’t want her with any “blacks” at his stadium or on her instagram page. It was deplorable series of statements, and left mouths across the league agape, calling for action.
Today, Adam Silver held a press conference to discuss how the league were going to handle Sterling and his comments; this decision is his first major one as commissioner and will set a precedent for his tenure. Well, it is obvious that he will not be tolerating anything like this again and has put all of the owners on notice.
Not only did Donald Sterling receive a $2.5 million fine, but he got a LIFETIME BAN from the league and any basketball operations. Silver also stated that he will pressure the board to force Sterling to sell the team, since he couldn’t force him out.
While this is major, it seems that there might be a silver lining for the estranged owner and husband, as droves of suitors are clamoring for an opportunity to purchase the Clippers. We hope that justice will continue to be served, and we will keep you posted on how this story fully plays out.
Jimi (@Nativejimi)
