He’s long been considered the worst owner in sports. Through different cities, different coaches, new players and uniforms, the one constant in his franchise’s hapless history has been its owner. One long punchline, no set-up necessary. Ever since Donald Sterling
He’s long been considered the worst owner in sports. Through different cities, different coaches, new players and uniforms, the one constant in his franchise’s hapless history has been its owner. One long punchline, no set-up necessary.
Ever since Donald Sterling purchased the San Diego Clippers in 1981, moving the club to Los Angeles in 1984, the billionaire real estate mogul has infuriated his own fan base to the point that casual NBA fans have always pitied the Clipper faithful. It was never worthwhile trying to make fun of their team because they were forever hamstrung by their selfish owner.
That identity has faded somewhat in the past few years, but no thanks to Sterling. The team lucked into the top pick in the draft (Blake Griffin) and was essentially given the league’s best point guard, Chris Paul, by Commissioner David Stern. Sterling did open up his wallet to lure head coach Doc Rivers, but even that was an arduous process.
While his team became a championship contender, Sterling continued a legacy of abhorrent human behavior that had been well established for years. The recorded conversation that surfaced this weekend was just the latest in his long line of discriminatory dialogue and it was enough to warrant an unprecedented repercussion.
On Tuesday, new NBA Commissioner Adam Silver put a period on the Sterling reign of terrible. He banned Sterling for life from all NBA involvement, also fining him $2.5 million in the process.
For everyone who had been requesting the harshest possible penalty, Silver left no room for disappointment. In his first major decision since taking over as commissioner on Feb. 1, he stepped right up to the plate and swung away with conviction. It sets a tone for Silver as not just a no-nonsense commissioner, but one who acts swiftly while still listening to the players’ concerns. Quite a persona.
Few NBA trades are as one-sided as what the league has pulled off in just a few months – it added a worthy commissioner and eliminated an endlessly unworthy owner.
On Monday, long-time NBA writer Bob Ryan spoke on the passing of legendary coach and announcer, Dr. Jack Ramsay. He said that Ramsay was a man who was aged, but never got old.
The opposite seems to be true of Sterling. He comes across as a broken man who has never gained any wisdom or moved beyond the foolish ideology of his youth. He’s gotten old, but never aged or matured. He had issues with his girlfriend being seen in public with African-American men while doing everything but stick his fingers in his ears and scream “na na na na na” when she continuously reminded him that she is half black. He’s willfully ignorant, perhaps so as to not have to judge himself for what he believes is improper.
In the released recording, Sterling constantly tells V. Stiviano that it’s not his personal racism, but the rules of society that are dictating his displeasure. That’s some of the most telling dialogue. We’ve known for a long time that Sterling has issues with minorities, but he’s so out of touch with present day reality that he believes a half black, half Mexican woman – even if some people thought she were white – posing for a picture with a black man would cause some sort of cultural blip.
There haven’t been many defenders, if any, but a quiet minority has expressed some hypocrisy in the general public for wanting to punish an individual for what he perceived to be a private conversation. If all of our private conversations were suddenly made public, would we be proud of everything we’ve had to say?
The answer, at least for me, is probably not. And while that may be a valid point and something for us all to ponder, it doesn’t change the fact that Sterling’s presence in the NBA is a detriment to the league. This wasn’t about freedom of speech. Sterling has the right to make all the bigoted, misguided, archaic statements he pleases — publicly or privately. And the rest of the league, along with its paying customers, have the right to not do business with such a person.
Clipper fans, you have your franchise back. Be sure to snap a multi-racial Instagram photo and caption it “Adios” to bid Sterling a fond — very fond — farewell.
