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Donald Sterling (NBA Clippers owner)

• Chinajohn 1,190 Posts

  Mon, Apr 28 2014 10:59 PM

  Firstly assuming the recording is genuine and is Donald Sterling.

  Is he entitled to his racist opinion .............. yes.

  Is he entitled to state his racist opinion .............. yes.

  Does his alleged racism negatively affect his position in a sport with a significant number of minority groups ............ yes.

  Does his position and his views negatively impact the sport ............ yes

  Should action therefore be taken against him ............. in my opinion most definitely.

  Question is what action should / could be taken. For me he should be invited to relinquish his ownership of the Clippers or if he refuses either a boycott of the team or the removal of their franchise, of course this would negatively impact many innocent individuals.

  Is his G/F making hay, being vindictive setting him up?       Irrelevant, she is (I believe) a mix Hispanic / African American and so almost certainly found his views loathsome, (even if at the same time finding his money attractive), and in my opinion anyone holding such views that does so secretly when in a position of authority over people from minority groups deserves at the very least to be outed.

   

  Now pass the tar and feathers!

   

• ThreeSpot 476 Posts

  Tue, Apr 29 2014 6:44 AM

  Well stated, Chinajohn. I do believe the most likely outcome is Sterling steps aside as owner, the distraction is removed, corporate sponsors trickle back in, Adam Silver is widely praised, the whole thing quickly blows over.

• BubbaSauce 260 Posts

  Tue, Apr 29 2014 7:33 AM

  DaddysKat:

  There is plenty of evidence that Don Sterling is a racist.  Comments made to Elgin Baylor ... comments made to Magic Johnson when he came to Los Angeles ... comments made to Kareem Adbul Jabar and comments made to athletes leaving the Clippers organization can easily prove that fact.  The taped conversation should not be admissible evidence however ... his GF at the beginning said "I'm not broadcasting anything", so clearly Donald was, as you stated, making a private opinion that she made public after they broke up.

  What Sterling says and thinks is very different from what he does.

  I'm not trying to defend him, what I'm saying is, if his "racist" views have influenced his business decisions, from hirings and firings to business transactions, then under the law of the land, he should be fined. That's what happens when you discriminate based on race, etc.

  That's how a normal business would be handled. You're not forced to give up your own property, i.e. your business. That is not what a free country is all about. If you can lose your property just for the way you think, then who decides what is acceptable thinking? And what happens when the pendulum of acceptable thinking swings the other way?

  Clearly, the NBA has a PR nightmare on their hands. However, they do not have the anti-trust exemption that Major League Baseball has so the NBA does not have the same power, as was exercised by MLB against Marge Schott when she owned the Reds.

  I agree it would be best for the Clippers and for the NBA if Sterling went away. But it's not consistent with the way businesses are dealt with when it comes to discrimination. Fine Sterling to oblivion if you have to, but let the forces of a free market make the final determination of Sterling's fate as owner.

  If the players feel strongly enough, why don't they walk away from the organization? If the fans feel strongly enough, why don't they stay away from the games? If enough of these things happen, it will be the end for Sterling.

  The man is an idiot. He has disgusting points of view. But in a free society, you shouldn't be forced to sell your business because of it.

• SweetiePie 4,925 Posts

  Tue, Apr 29 2014 8:00 AM

  He is nothing more than a modern day Caiaphas 

• DaddysKat 3,554 Posts

  Tue, Apr 29 2014 9:33 AM

  BubbaSauce:

  Clearly, the NBA has a PR nightmare on their hands. However, they do not have the anti-trust exemption that Major League Baseball has so the NBA does not have the same power, as was exercised by MLB against Marge Schott when she owned the Reds.

  From what I've read, the NBA's charter is private.  We really don't know if Sterling can be blocked indefinitely or will be required to sell the team.  Has this tape done serious damage to the NBA?  I, for one feel it has.  They have fielded lots of complaints from previous players that at one time played for the Clippers, yet they have done nothing.  Now that his feelings have been made public, the NBA is scrambling to fix this issue.

  BubbaSauce:

  If the players feel strongly enough, why don't they walk away from the organization? If the fans feel strongly enough, why don't they stay away from the games? If enough of these things happen, it will be the end for Sterling.

  I think Billy Crystal said it best ... Donald Sterling owns the name ... the fans own the team. If the NBA does little, it will be up to the fans to force Sterling to sell.  Having sponsors drop the clippers will help ... having the fans boycott games would be the icing he deserves.  

  The team is under contract.  They are forced to play and cannot boycott the game without some form of punishment.  I seriously doubt they will boycott the games, and personally I don't feel they should.  They did nothing wrong.  I liked what the Heat players did last night.  I hope other teams will follow suit to show their support for the team that has to deal with such a racist owner.

  I'm curious to see what happens in LA tonight.  

• CerinoDevoti 3,232 Posts

  Tue, Apr 29 2014 9:48 AM

  DaddysKat:

  Here's the link to the telephone conversation.  At the beginning, Don says to his GF, "you don't need to broadcast everything" ... in which she replies,"I'm not broadcasting anything." (maybe she should have used a "double-negative").  Then the comments ensue.  Totally bated into the conversation.

  I looked into the California law re: recording a telephone conversation. States both parties must know it's being recorded(2 party). In this case, did Sterling know for a fact the girl was recording the conversation? If he didn't know, whatever was recorded can't and shouldn't be used in the public forum as it already had been. The girl could be charged and TMZ Sports is also liable for broadcasting an illegal recording.

  After all that, the guy is a scum-bag and the girl is nearly worse. I'll add in the wife as a POS as well for holding on to her "lifestyle she had come accustomed to" instead of any shred of dignity and self-respect.

• filmslayer 2,340 Posts

  Tue, Apr 29 2014 9:50 AM

  i might be impressed if all these "upset" players walked away from their million dollar contracts , but they won't . they'll keep taking the mans money ... 

• BubbaSauce 260 Posts

  Tue, Apr 29 2014 11:45 AM

  Banned for life and a $2.5 million fine. As well, the owners will vote on whether Sterling can remain as an owner. According to Adam Silver, all within the jurisdiction of the NBA Constitution.

  Sterling admitted it was his voice on the tape and that those are his views. That was the comment given by Adam Silver.

  As for CA law, it would not surprise me to hear one day that charges are brought against Ms. Stiviano for the recording and/or that Sterling sues her for making the recording and making it public which resulted in his ban, fine and likely loss of ownership. It sounds crazy that he'd do that, but under the law, her actions caused his loss and that sounds compensatable to me.

   

• DaddysKat 3,554 Posts

  Tue, Apr 29 2014 11:57 AM

  BubbaSauce:

  As for CA law, it would not surprise me to hear one day that charges are brought against Ms. Stiviano for the recording and/or that Sterling sues her for making the recording and making it public which resulted in his ban, fine and likely loss of ownership. It sounds crazy that he'd do that, but under the law, her actions caused his loss and that sounds compensatable to me.

  I am very happy with the commissioner's decision, and I'm sure the NBA owners will vote to force him to sell the team.  I refused to attend Clipper games because of the owner ... even when they played my beloved Lakers!  In the LA area, Donald Sterling is known as the man that sells nothing.  My guess, Donald will fight if he's forced to sell the Clippers.  The NBA is governed by the U.S. Constitution, so more than likely, this will take a Supreme Court decision.

  As for Ms. V ... I do hope Donald Sterling sues her and forces her to sell off everything she received from him to defend herself.  Maybe she can write a book after it's all over.