34 nationaL sPorts
CHAUTAUQUA STAR
FRIDAY, MAY 2, 2014
five Questions about sterling’s Ban from nBa
Contributed Article
Associated Press
National Basketball
Association Commissioner Adam Silver
surprised many on
Tuesday when he
announced that Los
Angeles Clippers owner
Donald Sterling was
banned from the league
for life and that Silver
would take steps to
force him to sell the
team after an audio
recording surfaced of
the owner making racist statements.
Sterling was also fined
$2.5 million, the maximum allowable under
the NBA's constitution,
and the swift punishment was hailed by
players, owners and
coaches across the
league.
Silver's action against
Sterling is among the
stiffest rebukes ever
given to the owner of
a professional sports
team.
Here are five questions
and answers about the
situation.
games or practices, be
present at any Clippers
facility or participate in
any business dealings
or player personnel decisions going forward.
He also will not be
allowed to represent the
Clippers at any league
functions, including
the board of governors
meetings.
q: Why is Sterling in
trouble?
A: TMZ released an
audio recording last
weekend of Sterling
talking to a female
companion. In the
recording, Sterling
questions her association with minorities,
including Hall of Fame
basketball player Magic
Johnson.
''Why are you taking
pictures with minorities? Why?'' Sterling
asks the woman, V. Stiviano, who is of black
and Mexican descent.
Sterling also tells
Stiviano, ''don't bring
black people'' to Clippers games.
LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling (right) is under
fire for anti-black comments secretly recorded by
girlfriend (left). (Submitted Photo)
the two biggest stars
in the league, called
for Sterling's ouster.
The Heat and Clippers
both went through
pregame warmups for
their respective playoff games with their
shooting shirts turned
q: What was the
inside out as a silent
protest. Some players
reaction to the
said they were considaudio?
A: Sterling's comments ering boycotting playelicited sharp response off games if Sterling
remained in power.
from players, owners,
coaches, league sponSilver launched an
sors and even President investigation and
Barack Obama.
several prominent
corporate partners of
Miami Heat forward
LeBron James and Los the Clippers, including
Angeles Lakers guard Mercedes-Benz, Kia
Kobe Bryant, arguably and State Farm, said
they were pulling their
advertising from Clippers games in the wake
of the comments.
''There is no room in
the NBA - or anywhere
else - for the kind of
racism and hatred that
Mr. Sterling allegedly
expressed,'' basketball
icon and Charlotte
Bobcats owner Michael Jordan said. ''I
am appalled that this
type of ignorance still
exists within our country and at the highest
levels of our sport.''
q: What does the ban
mean for Sterling?
A: Sterling will not
be allowed to attend
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A: Silver said it was
too soon to tell if the
corporate partners who
pulled their advertisements would change
course. But in taking
such bold steps, Silver
said it was his intention
to send a strong message that racist views
and language would
not be tolerated.
''I'm outraged, so I
certainly understand
other people's outrage, and this will
take some time, and
appropriate healing
will be necessary,''
Silver said. ''I can
understand precisely
why, whether they
be people affiliated
with the NBA or the
Clippers for a long
time or those corporate partners. I can
understand how upset
they are, and I'll do
my best to bring them
back into the NBA
family.''
A: The NBA's constitution states that any
owner can be forced
out of the league with
the vote of 75 percent
of the remaining owners. That means if all
30 of the league's owners vote, 23 will have
to vote in favor of his
ouster.
Owners of several
teams, including the
Minnesota Timberwolves and Milwaukee
Bucks, issued statements in support of
Silver's decision and
said they would vote
to remove Sterling if
proceedings get to that
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q: What are
the financial
implications of the
incident?
q: Can the owners
really force
Sterling to sell the
team?
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