NBA team owner banned for life after racist tape emerges

THE OWNER of an NBA basketball team is being forced to sell his team after making racist comments in a recorded conversation.
RULING: Donald Sterling has been handed a life ban and is being forced to sell his team [AP]

Donald Sterling, owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, was banned for life from the league and handed a £1.5million fine on Tuesday after the tape emerged earlier this week.
Now NBA commissioner Adam Silver has called for other team owners to force the 'racist' owner out of the game by making him sell his team.
"We stand together in condemning Mr. Sterling's views. They simply have no place in the NBA," Silver said at a news conference.
If three quarters of the remaining 29 owners agree to force Sterling out, the 80-year-old, who has owned the club since 1981, will leave the NBA forever.
In the audio footage, Mr Sterling was reportedly arguing with his girlfriend V. Stiviano complaining about her posing in social media pics with black sports stars Magic Johnson and Los Angeles Dodgers baseball player Matt Kemp.

TEAM: The Clippers players turn their jerseys inside out before the game [AP]

“We stand together in condemning Mr. Sterling's views. They simply have no place in the NBA.”

Adam Silver, NBA Commissioner

Sterling asks: "It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you're associating with black people. Do you have to?"
Commissioner Silver added that he hoped the recording was fake when he first heard it and even though Mr Sterling did not know it was being recorded, it is far from acceptable.
He said: "Whether or not these remarks were initially shared in private, they're now public, and they represent his views."
The Clippers team protested against the owner's actions by turning their warmup shirts inside out to hide the Clippers logo before a match on Sunday night.

TAKING A STAND: Commissioner Adam Silver said there is "no place" for his actions in the NBA [AP]

Clippers star Chris Paul gave a brief statement before their match last night against the Golden State Warriors, saying: "In response to today's ruling by the NBA and Commissioner Adam Silver, my teammates and I are in agreement with his decision.
"We appreciate the strong leadership from Commissioner Silver and he has our full support."
The team then went on to win 113-103, leaving them just one victory away from a third playoff series since Sterling took over nearly 33 years ago.
Mr Sterling is yet to comment on recent events.