If you are a fan of the NBA or professional sports in general, chances are you've heard about the latest controversy surrounding LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling. If you haven't I'll give you the skinny on the situation. Sterling was having a conversation with his girlfriend Vanessa (V.) Stiviano. Unbeknownst to him, the entire thing was being recorded by Ms. Stiviano. The comments that Sterling made in this conversation were racist in general. Mostly revolving around the fact that he did not want his girlfriend making her outings with African Americans public on Instagram. Stiviano, who had posted a picture of herself with a picture of Magic Johnson, is a half African American, half Latina woman herself, which makes the situation even more interesting.
The latest information on the still developing story is that today (4/29/14), newly appointed NBA commissioner Adam Silver will make a ruling on the repercussions of the Sterling audio tapes. This press conference which will take place at 2pm EST is a very hot issue amongst the NBA, and sports community as a whole. This is commissioner Silver's first incident to deal with, and what a heavy initiation of sorts it is. Some who strongly criticize the words in Sterling's tape are hoping that he is removed of his ownership of the team. Some wish for Sterling to be fined, and/or suspended from the league for the remainder of the season. And then there are people who say there should be no repercussions for Sterling's actions because of the first amendment, arguing for his right to freedom of speech.
Personally, I believe that the commissioner should suspend Sterling as owner of the team for the remainder of the season, as well as issue a fine of a substantial amount. Taking the complete ownership of the Clippers away from Sterling (which is valued at around $575 million) is a very hefty fine, which I do not see likely for the new commissioner to issue.
This story is ongoing, and I hope that most parties are satisfied with the outcome of tomorrow's press conference. It is inevitable that some people will be left disappointed after the ruling of the commissioner due to the enormous amount of opinions which have been formed by individuals, like myself.
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EDIT :
The commissioner has officially ruled that Donald Sterling is to be banned from the NBA for life, and is also to be fined $2.5 Million dollars. The ban is effective immediately, however, Mr. Sterling is still the owner of the Clippers for the time being. In order for him to be removed from this position, a 3/4 vote from the remaining 29 owners in the league is required. This vote should be held very soon, and commissioner Silver sounded very convinced that the vote will end up removing Sterling as owner.
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