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Ohio Basketball Topic
Topic: OT: Donald Sterling, good riddance
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100%Cat
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Posted: 4/29/2014 2:45 PM
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NBA handed down a lifetime ban and a $2.5 million fine.  I am honestly surprised they came down this hard, just because I wasn't sure the new commish would have the guts to drop the hammer and do any more than smack his wrists.  Kudos to Mr. Silver. 
OUVan
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Posted: 4/29/2014 3:25 PM
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While I agree with the penalty this creates an interesting dynamic.  What are they going to do when a player inevitably spouts similarly racist comments? 
100%Cat
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Posted: 4/29/2014 3:40 PM
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OUVan wrote:expand_more
While I agree with the penalty this creates an interesting dynamic.  What are they going to do when a player inevitably spouts similarly racist comments? 


I think it's a hugely different dynamic coming from an owner of a franchise vs a player.
OhioCatFan
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Posted: 4/29/2014 3:57 PM
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While Sterling is obviously a racist idiot, I'm not sure the penalty fits the crime. From what I'm hearing Sterling is going to take this to court.  It'll be interesting to see how the court system handles this issue.  I know that on the surface this is a matter of an NBA contract with their owners that includes a relevant morality clause, but it might get more complex if Sterling does follow through with threats to litigate.  
OUVan
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Posted: 4/29/2014 4:08 PM
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100%Cat wrote:expand_more
While I agree with the penalty this creates an interesting dynamic.  What are they going to do when a player inevitably spouts similarly racist comments? 


I think it's a hugely different dynamic coming from an owner of a franchise vs a player.


I agree that there is a difference but if you are going to give Sterling the equivalent of the death penalty you have to come down pretty hard on anyone else that says something stupid. 
Andrew Ruck
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Posted: 4/29/2014 4:10 PM
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Can't wait to constantly hear about this for the next couple years as the courts hold things up and all the drama that will ensue as the Clippers try to continue to operate.
giacomo
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Posted: 4/29/2014 5:34 PM
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The interesting thing to me is how she baited him, recorded their conversation and leaked the recording. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. He apparently gave her several million dollars worth of stuff, but even that wasn't enough to buy her loyalty. A racist and a gold digger. What a match made in heaven. This is all about money. Elgin Baylor sued Sterling and called him a racist, but didn't do so until he was fired. He worked for the man for 23 years! There were signs everywhere that Sterling was a bad guy for many years, but nobody called him on it because of money. Doc Rivers had to know about the man, as he played for the Clippers, then went to coach them. Money.
Last Edited: 4/29/2014 5:35:25 PM by giacomo
colobobcat66
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Posted: 4/29/2014 5:45 PM
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giacomo wrote:expand_more
The interesting thing to me is how she baited him, recorded their conversation and leaked the recording. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. He apparently gave her several million dollars worth of stuff, but even that wasn't enough to buy her loyalty. A racist and a gold digger. What a match made in heaven. This is all about money. Elgin Baylor sued Sterling and called him a racist, but didn't do so until he was fired. He worked for the man for 23 years! There were signs everywhere that Sterling was a bad guy for many years, but nobody called him on it because of money. Doc Rivers had to know about the man, as he played for the Clippers, then went to coach them. Money.

High profile position requires that he not be caught on tape. This is not his first rodeo, just the first one so public. What a jackass.
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Posted: 4/29/2014 9:38 PM
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colobobcat66 wrote:expand_more
The interesting thing to me is how she baited him, recorded their conversation and leaked the recording. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. He apparently gave her several million dollars worth of stuff, but even that wasn't enough to buy her loyalty. A racist and a gold digger. What a match made in heaven. This is all about money. Elgin Baylor sued Sterling and called him a racist, but didn't do so until he was fired. He worked for the man for 23 years! There were signs everywhere that Sterling was a bad guy for many years, but nobody called him on it because of money. Doc Rivers had to know about the man, as he played for the Clippers, then went to coach them. Money.

High profile position requires that he not be caught on tape. This is not his first rodeo, just the first one so public. What a jackass.


I wondered about the privacy issue.  Some states allow conversations to be recorded with only one party's consent while other states require the consent of all parties.  But apparently he had asked her to tape their conversations so he could remember what was said.  And he thought she would never use them against him.  The guy is apparently dumber than Nixon.  The guy's entitled to his opinions (as screwy as they are) and should be able to discuss them in private conversations but damn near anything can become public -- especially when you're talking to someone who's a social media freak. 

I think owners, coaches and even front office people are held to a higher standard than players because they're in a position of authority.  Plus nobody buys a ticket to watch owners own, coaches coach or office people office.  It might not be fair but life isn't always fair.
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Posted: 4/30/2014 1:16 AM
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OhioCatFan wrote:expand_more
While Sterling is obviously a racist idiot, I'm not sure the penalty fits the crime. 


If this was an isolated incident? Perhaps not. But I like to think this is a culmination of years and years of abhorrent behavior from the man. He doesn't deserve to be the owner of an NBA franchise. He doesn't deserve a lot of the things he has.

Of course, those comments going public was such a black eye. Millions of dollars were lost almost instantly from sponsorships. There was the risk players would refuse to play. Who was going to sign there? I don't know how the NBA could allow him to continue after that.
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Posted: 4/30/2014 7:04 AM
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JSF wrote:expand_more
While Sterling is obviously a racist idiot, I'm not sure the penalty fits the crime. 


If this was an isolated incident? Perhaps not. But I like to think this is a culmination of years and years of abhorrent behavior from the man. He doesn't deserve to be the owner of an NBA franchise. He doesn't deserve a lot of the things he has.


According to the newspapers and sports radio out here,everyone knew the guy was a racist.
The papers said that he owns a lot of real estate and has settled a bunch of lawsuits over discrimination in renting/selling.
This just seems to be the first time he got nailed sayng something related to the NBA.

They were  saying on the radio yesterday that Sterling  refers to his current and former girlfriends as "whores" (apparently some may have been) and "gold digging trash".

They were also saying that only  the reason his current girlfriend went public is because Sterling's wife and family sued her to get back the gifts he gave her (1-2 Bentlys,Ferrari,2 mil. Apt.).

Hopefully now the whole thing settles down,unless of course he decides to fight the penalty in court.
Last Edited: 4/30/2014 7:06:39 AM by rpbobcat
GoCats105
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Posted: 4/30/2014 7:47 AM
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Move the team to Seattle and let Sterling fight his way through court for the next decade.
colobobcat66
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Posted: 4/30/2014 8:05 AM
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GoCats105 wrote:expand_more
Move the team to Seattle and let Sterling fight his way through court for the next decade.
He's 80 so that may be a little long for him
OUVan
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Posted: 4/30/2014 10:46 AM
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C Money
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Posted: 4/30/2014 11:52 AM
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OUVan wrote:expand_more



To the extent I have any problem with the Sterling punishment (and it's a very minimal problem.....from a business standpoint you cannot have Sterling associated with the league any longer), this is it. Sterling has a long history of saying/doing stupid/offensive/racist things, and the hammer should have dropped a long time ago so that we now don't have people like Shaq (who is unquestionably more high profile than Sterling from a marketing standpoint) saying/doing equally stupid/offensive things.

The outrage seems inconsistent. You could blame David Stern for not doing anything in the past, but to my knowledge the league hasn't officially addressed Shaq's current stupidity.
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Posted: 4/30/2014 11:53 AM
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And now Larry Johnson says there should be an all-black basketball league. How does this just get swept under the rug? Reverse-racism is still racism.

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2014/04/28/in-wake-of-sterlin.../
100%Cat
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Posted: 4/30/2014 12:11 PM
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C Money wrote:expand_more
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2615765/Shaquille-ONeal-accused-bullying-DISABLED-fan-removing-Instagram-shot-mocking-mans-selfie.html

How swift will the judgement be on Shaq?



To the extent I have any problem with the Sterling punishment (and it's a very minimal problem.....from a business standpoint you cannot have Sterling associated with the league any longer), this is it. Sterling has a long history of saying/doing stupid/offensive/racist things, and the hammer should have dropped a long time ago so that we now don't have people like Shaq (who is unquestionably more high profile than Sterling from a marketing standpoint) saying/doing equally stupid/offensive things.

The outrage seems inconsistent. You could blame David Stern for not doing anything in the past, but to my knowledge the league hasn't officially addressed Shaq's current stupidity.


Wouldn't Shaq have to be affiliated with the league to be punished by the league?  Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought he was an announcer with TNT, not working directly for the NBA.
OUVan
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Posted: 4/30/2014 12:31 PM
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100%Cat wrote:expand_more
Wouldn't Shaq have to be affiliated with the league to be punished by the league?  Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought he was an announcer with TNT, not working directly for the NBA.


You don't think the league has any say into who does games?
C Money
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Posted: 4/30/2014 12:32 PM
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100%Cat wrote:expand_more
Wouldn't Shaq have to be affiliated with the league to be punished by the league?  Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought he was an announcer with TNT, not working directly for the NBA.


You may be right, but even so I'd be shocked if there wasn't a conduct clause in both his employment contract with TNT and with TNT's broadcast contract with the NBA. The league absolutely cannot have it's lead marketing personas making stupid and offensive comments. The racial aspect of Sterling's comments is especially galling since, oh, the vast majority of key employees (the players) are of the race he is targeting, and the league was facing a player boycott if something wasn't done .

But from a marketing/PR standpoint, Shaq's conduct might be worse. Before the TMZ article, what percentage of the general public knew who Donald Sterling was? And what percentage of the general public knew who Shaquille O'Neal was?

In Shaq's defense, he has apparently apologized, and I don't think Sterling has. But if Sterling wasn't stealing all the headlines right now, Shaq would have to get some kind of suspension or the league would be facing torches and pitchforks.
100%Cat
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Posted: 4/30/2014 2:30 PM
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OUVan wrote:expand_more
Wouldn't Shaq have to be affiliated with the league to be punished by the league?  Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought he was an announcer with TNT, not working directly for the NBA.


You don't think the league has any say into who does games?


I think TNT/NBA has a broadcaster who was fired from NBC over his sodomy charge and subsequent assault and battery conviction in Marv Albert and a compulsive gambler with a DUI history in Charles Barkley...I'm not so sure that Shaq mocking a handicapped guy is going to get him booted.  Not that it isn't a bad thing that Shaq did, but I'd rank it below sodomy and DUI if I were ranking evils.
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Posted: 4/30/2014 2:45 PM
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A few owners in the NBA have been outspoken critics of gay marriage and some have even donated money to groups trying to prevent passage of laws.  I would think the NBA should want to crack down on these bigots as well?  
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Posted: 4/30/2014 2:52 PM
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JSF wrote:expand_more
He doesn't deserve to be the owner of an NBA franchise. He doesn't deserve a lot of the things he has.


No one, of course, "deserves" to be an NBA owner and I don't mean to mince words.  He was definitely not "worthy" of the task and his fellow owners, his business partners, are the ones who get to judge that.  It may be a sports league but it's also the highest form of private enterprise.  If GM fired their president for for being a racist and a blooming idiot that would be the end of it.  So should it be in this case.

At a minimum, he had a responsibility to the league not to screw things up and he did.  I think the big question to be litigated here is whether they can actually force him to sell.  I just read a really interesting article (SI, I think) about the last ABA team left after the merger.  They agreed to be bought out and fold for a percentage of future TV money.  Over two or three decades as the pot kept getting biger and bigger, the NBA failed in every attempt to buy them or force them out.  I see parallels here.
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Posted: 4/30/2014 2:53 PM
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the123kid wrote:expand_more
A few owners in the NBA have been outspoken critics of gay marriage and some have even donated money to groups trying to prevent passage of laws.  I would think the NBA should want to crack down on these bigots as well?  


I think there should just be a great flood.
Robert Fox
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Posted: 4/30/2014 4:14 PM
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the123kid wrote:expand_more
A few owners in the NBA have been outspoken critics of gay marriage and some have even donated money to groups trying to prevent passage of laws.  I would think the NBA should want to crack down on these bigots as well?  

Yes, thou shall think like I think, or thou shall be destroyed--by any means necessary.

 
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Posted: 4/30/2014 4:21 PM
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Robert Fox wrote:expand_more
A few owners in the NBA have been outspoken critics of gay marriage and some have even donated money to groups trying to prevent passage of laws.  I would think the NBA should want to crack down on these bigots as well?  

Yes, thou shall think like I think, or thou shall be destroyed--by any means necessary


From a business standpoint it is one thing to support an amendment, and another to say you do not want a certain group as a customer base ("I do not want them at my games") - especially a customer base that you share with 29 other franchisees.

Remember, he does not own the LA Clippers.  He owns the NBA franchise assigned to LA known as the Clippers.
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