In a stunning announcement, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver on Tuesday banned L.A. Clippers owner Donald Sterling from the league for life and fined him $2.5 million — the maximum sum allowed under the NBA bylaws — for his shockingly racist remarks about minorities. Silver added that he would urge the league's board of governors to force Sterling to sell the team.
"The views expressed by Mr. Sterling are deeply offensive and harmful," Silver said. "Sentiments of this kind are contrary to the principles of inclusion and respect that form the foundation of our diverse, multicultural, and multiethnic sport."
The move comes days after an audio recording emerged of Sterling imploring his girlfriend to not bring black people to his games. The firestorm around those remarks only dredged up Sterling's past history of alleged racial discrimination and derogatory remarks toward minorities, which prompted questions about why the league had tolerated his presence for so long.
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