Clippers Sold To Steve Balmer For $2 Billion - Finally Official

[key2win]

Donald Sterling, Los Angeles Clippers owner, receives lifetime ban from NBA - ESPN Los Angeles

PLEASE DO NOT POST ANYTHING OUT OF LINE ON THIS THREAD OR ELSE IT WILL BE CLOSED!!! KEEP THIS CLEAN AND CIVIL AND DO NOT PICK AN ARGUMENT WITH OTHER MEMBERS POSTS!!!

Out of all the years where Clippers have been the laughingstock of the league, this could have been there year to reach the NBA finals and then this happens. It would be funny if Magic Johnson ends up buying the Clippers after all is said and done. Supposedly the other 29 owners will vote sometime this week.

NEW YORK -- Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling has been banned for life by the NBA in response to racist comments the league says he made in a recorded conversation.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver said he will try to force the controversial owner to sell his franchise. Sterling also was fined $2.5 million, and Silver made no effort to hide his outrage over the comments.

"I fully expect to get the support I need from the other NBA owners to remove him," Silver said.

The rebuke, which came three days after the scandal broke, is the harshest penalty ever issued by the league and one of the stiffest punishments ever given to an owner in professional sports.

Silver said a league investigation found the NBA's longest-tenured owner was in fact the person on the incendiary audiotapes released over the weekend.

"We stand together in condemning Mr. Sterling's views," Silver said. "They simply have no place in the NBA."

Silver said Sterling acknowledged he was the man on the tape.

Sterling is immediately barred from attending NBA games or practices, being present at any Clippers office or facility, or participating in any business or player personnel decisions involving the team. He also cannot participate in any league business going forward.

It's unclear how Sterling will respond, and a lawsuit certainly seems possible.

Sterling's lawyer, Robert Platt, declined comment when asked by ESPN whether Sterling would dispute or respond to the league's actions.

"This league is far bigger than any one owner, any one coach and any one player," Silver said.

A team source told ESPN.com's Ramona Shelburne that the Clippers expect to work closely with the NBA to determine who will run the franchise.

[thebighurt035]

Haha,
look who can't go to any games now!!!

[tndcollectables]

My problem is why did it take so long? Just like Jabbar said, it has been going on for years.

[jwgreen68]

What he said was wrong, but I don't understand how he can be a part-time racist. Seriously, the guy is having an affair with a Black/Mexican woman. He doesn't hide the relationship. Yet, he descriminates against Blacks in his hotels, apartments,etc. So, I don't get it. Its wrong but doesn't make any sense. I also have a problem with Charles Barkley. He's a racist too. Why is it OK for him to say that the NBA is an "African-American" league? Is being black a requirement to play in the NBA? And why do black people insist on referring to themselves as "African-Americans"? If you were born in America doesn't that make you an "American" regardless of your skin color? Its no wonder racism still exists. Narrow-minded people will always have their hatred, that can't be easily changed. When you distance yourself from the norm, you open yourself up to scrutiny and criticism. MLK never wanted special treatment or to be treated differently, he just wanted everyone to be treated as "equal".

[tndcollectables]

^^^^amen^^^^^^

[omni d]

Spike Lee needs to go next.

[key2win]

[tndcollectables]

JW nailed it on the head though. With everyone wanting to call themselves ?-American racism will always be there. It starts with the President on down, for equality to happen it needs to start somewhere.

[key2win]

Donald Sterling, banned Los Angeles Clippers owner, says Magic Johnson not good example for Los Angeles kids - ESPN Los Angeles

He was better off when he didnt speak in the last 3 weeks. Real smart, take another jab at Magic. Someone who is loved by basically fans everywhere.

Banned Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling said Magic Johnson isn't a good role model for the children of Los Angeles, making the comment to CNN in the same interview where he also asks for forgiveness for the racist comments he made in leaked audio recordings that surfaced last month.

In the interview with Anderson Cooper that aired Monday night on CNN, Sterling said Johnson, who is HIV positive, is not "a good example for the children of Los Angeles."

"He's got AIDS," Sterling said. "... Is this someone we want to respect and tell our kids about? I think he should be ashamed of himself. I think he should go into the background."

Sterling's girlfriend, V. Stiviano, had posted a photo of her and Johnson on her Instagram account. Sterling told her to remove the photo and made racist comments that prompted outrage throughout the NBA and the nation when they were released, leading to his lifetime ban from the league just days later.

In the interview, Sterling said he's talked to Johnson twice since the audio recordings became public and was asked if he apologized to the former Los Angeles Lakers star.

"If I said anything wrong, I'm sorry," Sterling tells CNN in the interview. "He's a good person. I mean, what am I going to say?"

Sterling said Johnson urged him to "be patient" during their discussions.

"I think he wanted me just to do nothing, so he could buy the team," Sterling said.

However, Sterling added a dig at Johnson as well.

"Has he done everything he can do to help minorities? I don't think so. But I'll say it, he's great, but I don't think he's a good example for the children of Los Angeles," he tells CNN.

Johnson declined to comment on Sterling's remarks when asked by ESPN.com's Ramona Shelburne. A source close to Johnson told ESPN.com that Sterling contacted Johnson only once, however, just after Stiviano's recording leaked, and it was to apologize for what he said.

Sterling also claims in the interview that he was set up by Stiviano to make the comments.

"Well, yes, I was baited," Sterling tells CNN. "I mean, that's not the way I talk. I don't talk about people for one thing, ever. I talk about ideas and other things. I don't talk about people."

The interview comes nearly two weeks after NBA commissioner Adam Silver banned Sterling, fined him $2.5 million and urged the other league owners to force him to sell the team.

Sterling maintains he is "not a racist" and that his comments on the audio recordings were a "terrible mistake."

"I'm a good member who made a mistake," Sterling tells CNN. "Am I entitled to one mistake, am I after 35 years? I mean, I love my league, I love my partners. Am I entitled to one mistake? It's a terrible mistake, and I'll never do it again."

Sterling's ability to remain owner of the Clippers rests in the hands of the NBA's other 29 owners, who are expected to vote on the matter. A 75 percent majority is needed to oust Sterling. In the interim, the league has made Dick Parsons the CEO of the franchise.

Asked by CNN why he waited until now to make his first public comments, Sterling said he has been "emotionally distraught."

"The reason it's hard for me, very hard for me, is that I'm wrong," Sterling said. "I caused the problem. I don't know how to correct it."

His wife, Shelly, told ABC News' Barbara Walters on Sunday that she would fight to keep her 50 percent ownership stake of the team.

"I will fight that decision," Shelly Sterling said. "To be honest with you, I'm wondering if a wife of one of the owners, and there's 30 owners, did something like that, said those racial slurs, would they oust the husband? Or would they leave the husband in?

"I don't know why I should be punished for what his actions were."

NBA spokesman Mike Bass released a statement Sunday night in response to Shelly Sterling's comments.

"Under the NBA constitution, if a controlling owner's interest is terminated by a three-quarter vote, all other team owners' interests are automatically terminated as well," Bass said. "It doesn't matter whether the owners are related as is the case here. These are the rules to which all NBA owners agreed to as a condition of owning their team."

In turn, Shelly Sterling's attorney fired back with a statement of his own.

"We do not agree with the league's self-serving interpretation of its constitution, its application to Shelly Sterling or its validity under these unique circumstances," attorney Pierce O'Donnell said. "We live in a nation of laws. California law and the United States Constitution trump any such interpretation."

Shelly Sterling told Walters that she eventually will divorce her husband and that she hadn't yet done so due to financial considerations.

"For the last 20 years, I've been seeing attorneys for a divorce," she said. "In fact, I have here -- I just filed -- I was going to file the petition. I signed the petition for a divorce. And it came to almost being filed. And then, my financial adviser and my attorney said to me, 'Not now.'"

[key2win]

NBA initiates charge against Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling - ESPN Los Angeles

NEW YORK -- The NBA charged Donald Sterling on Monday with damaging the league with his racist comments and set a hearing for June 3, after which other team owners will vote to decide the future of his ownership of the Los Angeles Clippers.

The league also said the banned owner has engaged in other conduct that has impaired its relationship with fans and merchandising partners.

Sterling has asked for a three-month delay in the hearing, sources told ESPN.com. That request is expected to be rejected, sources said. The owners' vote will take place after the hearing, which will be held in New York.

Sterling's comments during a CNN interview May 12 with Anderson Cooper are included as part of the basis for the charge to remove him and the rest of the Clippers' ownership group. The charge relates to a TMZ audio recording made public last month and acts related to that recording, including the CNN interview.

"All of these acts provide grounds for termination under several provisions of the NBA constitution and related agreements," the league said in a statement.

Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor, the chairman of the league's board of governors, will preside over the hearing, which is planned for two days before the start of the NBA Finals. If three-fourths of the owners vote to sustain the charge, Sterling will be forced to sell the team he has owned since 1981.

Commissioner Adam Silver has said he is confident he has the votes.

Sterling and his lawyer, Maxwell Blecher, were hand-delivered the written charges on Monday. Blecher then sent an email back to the league's general counsel, Rick Buchanon, asking for the three-month delay. The NBA constitution provides that, after being formally charged, five business days are granted.

Blecher has declined comment through his law firm.

His client was banned for life and fined $2.5 million by Silver after the release of the TMZ recording. He has until May 27 to respond to the charge, and he has the right to appear at the hearing and make a presentation in front of the board of governors. If Sterling does not respond by May 27, that would be grounds for termination.

Sterling told a female friend, V. Stiviano, not to bring black people to Clippers games during their conversation that was recorded. He had specifically mentioned Magic Johnson on that recording, and during his CNN interview with Cooper, Sterling criticized the NBA Hall of Famer, calling him a poor role model.

"Among other things, Mr. Sterling disparaged African-Americans and 'minorities'; directed a female acquaintance not to associate publicly with African-Americans or to bring African-Americans to Clippers games; and criticized African-Americans for not supporting their communities," the NBA said.

The league also charged Sterling with issuing a false and misleading news statement about the matter.

Article 13 of the NBA's constitution states that one of the conditions that could lead to termination is if an ownership fails or refuses "to fulfill its contractual obligations to the Association, its members, players, or any other third party in such a way as to affect the Association or its members adversely."

A number of sponsors suspended deals with the Clippers in the wake of Sterling's remarks, potentially hurting league revenues, and some players have said they would consider a boycott next season if Sterling still owned the team.

"Mr. Sterling's actions and positions significantly undermine the NBA's efforts to promote diversity and inclusion; damage the NBA's relationship with its fans; harm NBA owners, players and Clippers team personnel; and impair the NBA's relationship with marketing and merchandising partners, as well as with government and community leaders," the league said.

If Sterling does not respond to the charge within five business days, or if he does not appear at the hearing, it would be deemed an admission of the "total validity of the charges as presented," according to the constitution.

But even the players who want him out believe Sterling will fight, and his attorney sent a letter to the league last week informing it that Sterling wouldn't be paying the fine. Blecher also said Sterling will sue if not afforded due process.

Sterling's estranged wife, Shelly, has said she will fight to keep her 50 percent share of the team even if Donald Sterling is forced to sell, but the league said in its statement that "all ownership interests in the Clippers will be terminated" if the charge is upheld.

Shelly Sterling's lawyer, Pierce O'Donnell, released a statement on Monday.

"We have just received the voluminous charges and are beginning the process of carefully reviewing them," O'Donnell said. "Based on our initial assessment, we continue to believe there is no lawful basis for stripping Shelly Sterling of her 50 percent ownership interest in the Clippers. She is the innocent estranged spouse. We also continue to hope that we can resolve this dispute with the NBA for the good of all constituencies."

[key2win]

Donald Sterling tried to mislead NBA's investigation of Los Angeles Clippers owner's racist comments - ESPN Los Angeles

This just keeps on getting worse and funnier at the same time. LOL!

After conducting a formal review, the NBA has alleged that Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling and his management team attempted to mislead the league during its investigation of racist remarks he made on a recording published by TMZ, according to a report obtained by the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday.

Sterling's actions were among several allegations the NBA made against the banned owner as well as Clippers management in the 30-page report, as detailed by the Times.

Among the others:

• Sterling tried to get V. Stiviano to lie about the authenticity of the recording and tell investigators that she had altered the audio of the TMZ tape. Stiviano was the person Sterling made the racist comments to on the tape, in which he voices unhappiness with her for posting online photos of herself with black people, including Hall of Famer Magic Johnson.

• On April 9, more than two weeks before it became public, the Clippers received a copy of the recording. Team president Andy Roeser discussed it with Sterling, then instructed an employee to destroy the copy. Roeser is currently on an indefinite leave of absence.

• Sterling and his wife, Shelly, are not estranged, as she has said. "Significant evidence exists in the public record and otherwise that Mr. and Mrs. Sterling are not in any sense estranged," the report says, according to the Times, adding that they are "inextricably intertwined" despite their claims. The report details how the two attended most Clippers home games this season, were spotted together at the All-Star Game in New Orleans and spent two days together immediately after the controversial recording went public.

In a statement released Wednesday, Shelly Sterling's lawyer, Pierce O'Donnell, said his client "continues to be unfairly tarnished by the words and actions of her co-owner and estranged husband" and that "certain assertions made about Shelly in the NBA charging document against Donald Sterling are untrue and lack context."

According to the Times, the 80-year-old Sterling was shown the 30-page report and other evidence by the NBA on Monday. He did not respond to a request for comments by the newspaper.

Also Monday, the NBA charged Sterling with damaging the league with his racist comments and set a hearing for June 3.

Sterling has until Tuesday to respond to the charge, and he has the right to appear at the hearing and make a presentation in front of the league's board of governors. If Sterling does not respond by Tuesday, that would be grounds for termination as owner.

He has asked for a three-month delay in the hearing, sources told ESPN.com. NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the timeline will not be extended.

[key2win]

Donald Sterling allows Shelly Sterling to negotiate sale of Los Angeles Clippers - ESPN Los Angeles

Disgraced Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling has agreed to allow his wife, Shelly, to negotiate a sale of the team, sources with knowledge of the situation told ESPN.

Shelly Sterling and her lawyers have been negotiating with the NBA since commissioner Adam Silver banned her husband from the NBA for life on April 29 for making racially charged comments on an audiotape.

Although the league has yet to accept this arrangement, sources said that if she is willing to sell the entire team with terms that are acceptable to the league, this could bring a startlingly quick end to what appeared to be a protracted legal battle.

Heat star LeBron James said it was "very important" a resolution be reached quickly.

"We don't want this lingering around our sport," he said. "It sucks that it happened. The players and owners and everyone associated with this game knows there's no need for it. So the quicker it gets done, the quicker we can move on."

James said that Sterling selling the team was "the way it should be."

"He shouldn't be part of this league," James added.

Shelly Sterling does intend to sell the Clippers, but it remains unclear how much of a share -- if not all -- she's willing to sell, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. Sources said the only way the NBA would accept the terms of this agreement between Donald Sterling and his wife would be if the team was sold in its entirety.

Among the issues Shelly Sterling is considering, the source said, are the substantial tax obligations she would incur from the sale.

According to IRS rules, the Sterlings would have to pay a federal long-term capital-gains tax of 20 percent and a California tax of 13.3 percent. The tax would be on the difference between what the team was bought for and what it is ultimately sold for. If the team is sold for $1 billion, the Sterlings would be taxed $328.5 million on the sale. Sterling bought the team from Irv Levin in 1981 for $13.5 million.

[ranbethscards]

I am having a problem with the NBA owners waiting until the first week in June to vote.

Why drag this out? Vote... get it over with... and let's move on to next season!

[key2win]

Donald Sterling strongly responds to NBA's 'draconian' penalties - ESPN Los Angeles

I knew this idiot wouldnt let it go. This is going to be a long process that is going to make the Clippers look bad.

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling has no intention of selling the team and "is going to fight to the bloody end," his lawyer, Max Blecher told ESPN on Tuesday.

Sterling responded forcefully to the NBA's charges to terminate his ownership Tuesday evening, calling the NBA's penalties "draconian" and the proceedings a "sham."

In the documents sent to the NBA offices Tuesday, Sterling denies every allegation and charge made by the NBA and asks that the proceedings to terminate him at a hearing of the Board of Governors on June 3 be dismissed.

"I believe what they've done is illegal and it will not hold up in court," Blecher told ESPN. "I believe what they're doing is a blatant invasion of his constitutional rights because they're using a tape recording that he did not consent to and under California law that recording cannot be used for any purpose, for any proceeding.

"So if the basis of their case is illegal evidence, they don't have much of a case. ... The whole thing is a pile of garbage."

Blecher also said that Sterling was "disavowing" anything his wife Shelly Sterling has done to try and negotiate a sale of the team.

Pierce O'Donnell, the attorney for Shelly Sterling, issued a statement Tuesday which said that "Donald Sterling has authorized Shelly Sterling in writing to negotiate the sale of the Los Angeles Clippers, including his 50 percent ownership of the team" and his client "and the NBA are working cooperatively on the transaction."

Shelly Sterling has moved aggressively to sell the team in advance of the June 3 hearing and remained undeterred by her husband's change of direction Tuesday.

A source with knowledge of the situation told ESPN that bids on the Clippers franchise are due by Wednesday afternoon.

Shelly Sterling has retained Bank of America to help sell the franchise. ESPN reported on Sunday that at least six serious groups have approached Shelly Sterling and her advisers about purchasing the team.

That agreement seems to be in jeopardy now.

"I don't know what agreement she has with him, but I'm saying to you today, he disavows anything she's doing to sell the team," Blecher said. "He says, 'It's my team and I'll sell it when and if I get around to it.' "

Asked why Sterling seems to have had a change of heart, Blecher said, "He was in a state of shock at first. Now he's recovering and he's much more feisty."

Both Sterlings had until midnight ET to respond to the NBA's charges. Shelly Sterling also filed a response to the league's termination charges, reasserting her 50 percent ownership interest in the team and contending that she is being unfairly punished for the actions of her husband.

In a statement from vice president of communications Mike Bass, the NBA said the responses from the lawyers representing Donald and Shelly Sterling, will be distributed -- together with the charge -- to the Board of Governors before the hearing next Tuesday.

"Should the Board vote to sustain the charge, the Sterlings' interests in the Clippers will be terminated and the team will be sold," the league said.

In his written response, Sterling also threatens future legal action against the NBA under state or federal law, questions his ability to get a fair hearing from the Board of Governors -- many of whom issued statements condemning his words and praising the actions of NBA commissioner Adam Silver -- and states that he never intended to harm the NBA with his comments.

"This was an argument by a jealous man and the woman he loved that never should have left the privacy of the living room," the response reads. "And while Mr. Sterling said some terrible words in the passion of the argument -- as he had already publicly admitted and for which he has apologized -- he has not taken a 'position' or an 'action.' "

Sterling also argues that he is being unfairly punished commensurate with other offenses, such as the $100,000 fine Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant received in 2011 for using a homophobic slur at a referee.

While his "opinions may be unpopular and false, they remain opinions," Sterling's response reads. He questions whether the NBA is "willing to set a standard that an individual can be punished for voicing a negative opinion.

"If so, such a standard will make short shrift of many players and coaches. It will also needlessly suppress free speech."

Sterling specifically references Orlando Magic owner Richard DeVos, who, in his words, "has made highly controversial comments against individuals with HIV/AIDS and generously supports anti-homosexual causes with impunity."

Sterling contends that while his statements were regrettable, they did not have a materially adverse affect on the NBA and that because he is locked out from his offices at Staples Center, he is not able to adequately respond to those charges.

"Among other things," Sterling's response reads, "he cannot verify how many season-ticket holders have demanded refunds, how many individuals purchased season tickets after the illegal recording was released, and how merchandise and concession sales were impacted after the illegal recording."

[key2win]

Early bids in to Shelly Sterling for Los Angeles Clippers - ESPN Los Angeles

Initial bids for the Los Angeles Clippers have been submitted and are being reviewed by Shelly Sterling and her advisers, while sources with knowledge of the situation say bids were mostly in the $1 billion to $1.2 billion range.

Shelly Sterling, who has been given authority to sell the team by husband Donald Sterling, and her advisers will vet and separate the strongest bids over the next few days with the goal of completing what one source described as "an accelerated process" by Monday.

Shelly Sterling told bidders to submit letters of interest by Wednesday, with firm offers due by 5 p.m. ET Thursday, according to sources. It is expected a second round of bidding will take place this weekend, with a winning bid decided upon by Monday. It is unclear how many rounds will take place, especially under the accelerated time frame.

If a winning bid is decided upon by Monday, an agreement to sell the team would be in place before Tuesday's scheduled hearing in New York at which the other 29 team owners will vote on whether to force a sale of the team after Donald Sterling has a chance to make his case to them.

Shelly Sterling is agreeing to sell 100 percent of the team, according to sources, an important condition for the NBA.

While Donald Sterling and his lawyer "disavowed" an agreement that gave Shelly Sterling the right to negotiate a sale, sources said there is a belief among the bidders that Shelly Sterling eventually will convince him to sell the franchise and this accelerated process will be successful.

The NBA released a statement saying its advisory and finance committee met via conference call Wednesday, plans to review all documents and still intends to vote Tuesday on the matter.

Sources told ESPN that bidders have been encouraged to finance as little of the deal as possible. Because of the well-heeled nature of the bidders, it's believed the winning bid could be paid for with at least 80 percent cash and less than 20 percent of it financed. This would make bids easier to evaluate more quickly.

One group involved is led by music mogul David Geffen and includes Oracle CEO Larry Ellison and Oprah Winfrey. This group now also includes Guggenheim executives Todd Boehly and Mark Walter, Steve Jobs widow Laurene Jobs, Steve Wynn's ex-wife Elaine Wynn and Beats By Dre co-founder Jimmy Iovine, ESPN has learned.

Sources with knowledge of the process told ESPN's Marc Stein that a group led by former NBA All-Star Grant Hill and billionaire investors Tony Ressler and Bruce Karsh also formally submitted a bid before Wednesday's deadline.

In addition, billionaire and former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is said to be involved in the bidding.

On Wednesday, Seattle Seahawks (and former USC Trojans) coach Pete Carroll took to Twitter to back Ballmer.

Ballmer told the Wall Street Journal earlier this month that, should he obtain the Clippers, he would not attempt to move the franchise from Los Angeles, saying that would be "value destructive."

Donald Sterling on Tuesday submitted a 32-page response to the NBA's charge that he be banned for life and fined $2.5 million, with owners urged to vote to force the sale of the team, after release of a tape on which Sterling is heard making racist remarks. In the response, Donald Sterling vowed to fight the league's discipline and its attempts to terminate his ownership.

But five days earlier, an attorney for Donald Sterling sent a letter to the NBA saying that Sterling had authorized his wife to negotiate a sale of the team.