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Sterling Bristles at NBA's Kangaroo Court
by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700
Copyright
June 28, 2014
All Rights Reserved.
Asked to respond to NBA Commissioner Adam
Silver’s April 29 $2.5 million fine, lifetime ban and expected June 3 forced
sale of his Los Angeles Clippers franchise, 80-year-old Donald Sterling offered
his rebuttal. Through his attorney
Los Angeles litigator Maxwell Blecher, Sterling rejected Silver’s fine and
lifetime ban, insisting the infamous secret recording by his former 31-year-old
girlfriend V. Stiviano was obtained illegally and not for public consumption. Given to TMZ Sports by “someone”
April 26, the secret recording of Sterling urging “V” to not associate or bring
blacks to Clippers games, turned the NBA on its head, prompting the Players
Assn. to boycott the playoffs unless Silver acted decisively to get rid of
Sterling. Blecher insisted the
illegal recording “during an inflamed lover’s quarrel in which he was clearly
distraught,” excused the octogenarian.
What Sterling and his attorney don’t get is that the NBA reserves the
right under its constitution to eject anyone that damages the NBA brand. Sterling’s abysmal judgment to hang
out with lowlifes, make insanely unforgivable statements and somehow expect that
it wouldn’t bite him in the rear end and destroy his career show how far the Los
Angeles real estate mogul went over the deep end. Blecher knows that the NBA has the
right to terminate his franchise with cause, given the upheaval Sterling’s
racist remarks caused to the NBA.
Sterling’s argument now becomes the feeble excuse he didn’t mean to defame and
discredit the league. “A jealous
rant to a lover never intended to be published cannot offend the NBA rules,”
said Blecher’s letter, hoping the NBA would buy his logic. Sterling wants to put the evil genie
back in the bottle but he knows it’s too late.
Sterling played a high-wire act and got burned, hanging out with
undesirables for the all the titillation that brought down one of the most
promising NBA franchises. Bought in
1981 from a measly $12.5 million, the Clippers recent success has now upped the
value well in excess of $1 billion.
Some experts expect the forced sale to fetch closer to $2 billion when it’s all
over. Sterling’s argument that he’s
not given “due process” can’t hold up under his NBA franchise agreement that
makes special provisions for evicting renegade owners. While it’s true that Sterling broke
no laws, his racist rant showed no class, disparaging the very coaches, players
and league officials that drove his franchise value into the stratosphere. “The Sterlings’ interest in the
Clippers will be terminated and the team will be sold,” said the league office,
proving the June 3 hearing is truly a Kangaroo court.
League officials have decided that Sterling harmed the NBA brand and must
be terminated at the earliest possible time.
Arguing that the secrete recording was “illegally obtained” or not met
for public consumption begs the question now that the cat’s out of the bag. Sterling’s tainted judgment brought
the entire mess on himself. No one
told him to hang out with also-rans and ne’er-do-wells, all at his pleasure and
now at the expense of the NBA, fans and public at large, disgusted with his
sordid conduct. However Sterling
plans to spend his private time is his business, until it sucked in the NBA and
all involved. Sterling’s wife,
Shelly, to whom Donald gave exclusive rights to pursue selling the team, also
feels she’s been tarred-and-feathered by her husband’s behavior. Calling the NBA’s action a “vigorous response to the attempt by the NBA to blame her for
doing nothing wrong,” Shelly thinks she’s been wronged.
Sterling claims the June 3 hearing isn’t fair because the owners have
already made up their minds.
Perhaps only 55-year-old Dallas Mavericks’ billionaire owner Mark Cuban will
cast the dissenting vote, if for, not other reason, he dug himself into a hole
opining about avoiding blacks in hoodies.
Cuban knows firsthand now what it’s like to be pigeonholed for making
controversial remarks, ones clearly taken out of context. “These proceeding will be a
spectacle meant to mollify the popular opinion, not a fair and impartial
hearing, the outcome of these proceeding became a foregone conclusion weeks
ago,” said Sterling’s NBA response.
Sterling’s attorney knows that the NBA isn’t court of law but a private club
that sets its own entrance and exit requirements, including a decision to evict
him from membership. Sterling can’t
argue his property rights have been violated when he stands to make a killing.
Whether Sterling’s a racist
or not is anyone’s guess. Based on
all the press reports, including his feeble interview with Anderson Cooper on
CNN, it looks like he’s emotionally and cognitively challenged, taking the kinds
of risks and making the kinds of decisions that preclude him from owning an NBA
franchise. Whether or not
Sterling’s had disputes with tenants in his rental business has nothing to do
with his secretly recorded racist rant that “V” caught on tape. No matter how embarrassing and
self-destructive, Sterling admitted that it was his voice on the tape making
inexcusable statements. “Mr.
Sterling was not ‘conducting the sport of professional basketball’ when he was
arguing with Ms. Stiviano in her living room,” argued Sterling’s attorney,
completely missing the point of his abysmal judgment. Whether the recording was intended
for the public or not, everyone heard it.
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