Now that the Donald Sterling Controversy has Died Down, it’s Time to Discuss the Most Overlooked Aspect of that Whole Debacle

It seems like forever ago that TMZ released the tapes of soon-to-be former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling telling his “personal assistant” that her African-American friends were not welcome at Clippers games.  But in all reality it was just a few short weeks ago in which this all transpired.    We have all heard the standard takes:  The most popular one has been the sports radio guys acting like this is the end of the world and pretty much suggesting this asshole be executed in public.  It’s become a content of one-upsmanship to the most disturbing degree, and par for the course in this wonderland of manufactured outrage.

Then there have been those who said that we should have all seen this coming.  This a genuine take (and one that Dubs had in his podcast) that suggests that we all knew Donald Sterling was a racist before we heard this on tape.  He’s been chasing minorities out of his properties for decades, which is almost unthinkable when you consider he’d never set foot in any of those places without a gallon of hand sanitizer in his hand.  (Of course I’m kidding – he’d probably have his “assistant” carrying it…)  Sterling was known to check players out in the locker room and feel their muscles almost as if he was purchasing slaves, and if I listed every other reason why he’s racist this column wouldn’t get finished until we’re done with the great Russian War of 2017.     But throughout all of that, we seem to have been missing what is the most overlooked point of this entire situation.  A point that has been glossed over so much it’s almost hard to believe nobody is talking about, but then again that’s what Sports Blog Movement is for.  And that point is…

Could Donald Sterling Win A Lawsuit Against the NBA?

Dubsism

On Monday, NBA commissioner Adam Silver has handed Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling a lifetime ban from the NBA, along with issuing the maximum allowable fine of $2.5 million. Silver also said that we will ask the NBA owners to essentially kick Sterling out of the league. Since then, there have been lots of articles written proclaiming victory over the evil Sterling and celebrating the end of his reign.

Now, do not mistake this as defense of Sterling; I’m on record far too many times decrying what a colossal asshole he is (here, here, and here for starters).  Nor is this a criticism of Silver’s actions. His hand was forced by a “perfect storm” of circumstances; 30+ years of inaction by the NBA, a firestorm of public outrage, a threatened walk-out by the players, and sponsors bailing out meant Silver really had no choice.  Rather…

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Good Riddance To Donald Sterling

jsportsblogger

Today, the right decision was made. Donald Sterling, the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, was banned for life by NBA commissioner Adam Silver for making racist remarks on a taped conversation with his mistress. Sterling was also fined $2.5 million for his views on blacks and minorities in general.

While Sterling will maintain ownership of the Clippers, it forces his hand in selling the team he has owned since 1981, when he bought the franchise for $12.5 million. Today, the franchise is $575 million according to Forbes magazine.

So no matter what, Sterling will leave the NBA a wealthier man, than when he arrived 33 years ago.

But for all that, I say good riddance to one of the worst owners in the history of North American sports. I wrote about Sterling and the Clippers some time ago in my Worst Teams of All Time series. I portrayed…

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The Donald Sterling Situation Has Exposed Doc Rivers As Either An Idiot Or A Hypocrite

Dubsism

The other day, I did a podcast on this Donald Sterling situation, and one of the things I mentioned in that show is that when it hits the media, racism does a wonderful job of exposing stupidity, both for the jag-off who says the racist comment and invariably for somebody who gets their hand forced by it. Thanks to the 24-hour news cycle, we are all balls-deep in what Los Angeles Clippers’ owner Donald Sterling said.  But with all the attention being paid to that idiot, there’s some others who are getting exposed as well.

The first of what I’m guessing will be several examples to come from this whole affair is Clippers’ coach Doc Rivers. Here’s a guy with a real problem on his hands. On one hand, whether he likes it or not, he is stuck in middle of this mess, and on the other hand, he has…

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Donald Sterling Continues To Prove That He Is A Terrible Human Being, NBA Team Owner

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling has often been accused of being a racist — thanks to sworn testimony and affidavits — but until recently, there wasn’t a whole lot of audio/visual proof of it. But on April 25th, TMZ released a audio recording that is allegedly Sterling going on a nine minute diatribe about black people to his girlfriend. This alleged proof of Sterling’s racist activities is going to prove a major test for NBA commissioner Adam Silver.

According to the TMZ article, Sterling went off on his girlfriend because she posted a picture to Instagram where she is hanging out with an African-American in LA. The article has him complaining about how she was associating with him, and was putting that picture out where everyone can see it (she has since taken the photo down). Sterling is even quoted as telling her to not take black people to his games, including Magic Johnson — a NBA Hall of Famer and HIV/AIDS patient.

This isn’t the first time that Sterling has been accused of racism, as he has faced several lawsuits regarding comments regarding tenants at some of the housing complexes he owns. But this is the first time there is alleged proof of the racist comments and actions. And that means that the NBA actually has to deal with this allegation (*cough..cough* investigate it *cough…cough*) instead of ignoring it like the other ones. Continue Reading->

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WHAT WE KNOW NOW: GOING OVERCOVER ON THE RICHIE INCOGNITO STORY, PART II‏

On Monday morning the story involving Miami Dolphins guard Richie Incognito and offensive tackle Jonathan Martin became much more severe.  Whereas in our first piece we had no idea what was said, we now know that both the NFL and the Miami Dolphins have listened to an audio recording of Incognito where he uttered the following:

“Hey, wassup, you half n—er piece of shit. I saw you on Twitter, you been training 10 weeks. [I want to] shit in your fucking mouth. [I’m going to] slap your fucking mouth. [I’m going to] slap your real mother across the face [laughter]. Fuck you, you’re still a rookie. I’ll kill you.”

For the record, this is only one of the messages that was released.  Apparently there are many more, as well as a series of texts which refer to him being called a certain part of the female anatomy.  He also apparently called him some kind of homophobic slur, and I’m sure we can all picture in our minds which one it was.

So let’s break it down as to why this is going to piss people off so much – line by line, and reading in between the lines as well.

WHAT WE KNOW NOW: GOING OVERCOVER ON THE RITCHIE INCOGNITO STORY, PT. 1‏

(Editor’s note:  This is part one of a two part story as compiled on Sunday, November 3rd, 2013.  Breaking news that has changed this story has just been released.  We’re going to go ahead and run what we have here, and then do a follow up that will run on SBM the morning of Wednesday, December 6^th.)

A very bizarre story involving two Miami Dolphins linemen has come to the forefront this week.  The players involved were right tackle Jonathan Martin and guard Richie Incognito.  The alleged misbehavior revolves around a certain event in particular…

Sources told ESPN that one of the significant allegations being reviewed is that Incognito got Martin to contribute $15,000 to help finance a trip to Las Vegas by some Dolphins last summer, even though Martin preferred not to travel with the group. 

While ESPN is still the worldwide leader in blowing things way out of proportion, they’ve also been on this story for almost a week and it looks like for once they may have nailed it. 

BOB COSTAS, THE WASHINGTON REDSKINS, AND SUNDAY NIGHT ETHICS COURSES DISGUISED AS FOOTBALL BROADCASTS

by Ryan Meehan

During Sunday Night’s presentation of the Cowboys/Redskins game, Bob Costas did a piece during halftime about the Washington Redskins and the debate that is going on about whether their name should be changed.  The piece was relatively impartial and informative.  He was actually doing a decent job of staying neutral for a while there, but you just knew there was some bullshit coming and here it was:

“Still, the NFL franchise that represents the nation’s capital has maintained its name.  But think for a moment about the term “Redskins,” and how it truly differs from all the others.  Ask yourself what the equivalent would be, if directed toward African-Americans, Hispanics, Asians, or members of any other ethnic group…” 

Okay, first of all…no.  I can prove to you that is not the case. 

TALES OF HYPOCRISY AND CONFUSION: HONORING CIVIL RIGHTS ON ELVIS NIGHT‏

If you work for the Chicago White Sox marketing department and you’re responsible for this, I hope that you get the bird flu. And I hope that you get it from an alligator bite so that the conversation where the doctor has to explain the whole situation to your family is extremely awkward and uncomfortable.

by Ryan Meehan

Friday night in Chicago at US Cellular field the Texas Rangers were in town to take on the Chicago White Sox.  This was a special game for the White Sox to be hosting, as it was also Major League Baseball’s annual “Civil Rights Game”.  It’s my understanding that this event is held to honor players like Jackie Robinson who helped advance the cause of minorities in sport, as well as raise awareness for the dwindling number of active African American players in baseball.  The designation of the Civil Rights Game was something that Major League Baseball assigned to this particular game, and like any sport that pretty much trumps any promotion that the stadium might be running at the time.

Something which surprises me that almost nobody is talking about is the same evening, the promotion that they just happened to be running at the ballpark was Elvis night.  They encouraged fans to dress like the self-proclaimed “King” of rock n’ roll, and even had Elvis impersonators sing the National Anthem and the seventh inning stretch. 

RILEY COOPER: THE MEEHAN TAKE

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Andrew W.K.

by Ryan Meehan

I’m standing about forty-five feet from Younkers, a local retail department store that sells everything from hair care products to mattresses.  Usually their stuff is drastically overpriced, or at least most of the products are.  About a month and a half ago, Paula Deen underwent severe public scrutiny for her use of the N-word to describe African Americans.  Her cookware is now half off at Younkers – It’s still really good quality and nobody is buying it.

This week, Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Riley Cooper became the new Paula Deen.  A video leaked Wednesday of Cooper referring to a bouncer at the backstage area of a Kenny Chesney concert as an “N-word”.  The video quickly went viral, and just like that America had someone else to hate.  in that collective moment, they once again vaporized the thought that they themselves could be the source of something so “hateful”.