Michael Jordan blasts Donald Sterling for alleged racist remarks
Charlotte Bobcats owner and NBA legend Michael Jordan has provided a statement on the audio tape that contains racist remarks being attributed to Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling.
Jordan, one of the league's few minority owners, emphatically states that "There is no room in the NBA - or anywhere else - for the kind of racism and hatred that Mr. Sterling allegedly expressed." Jordan went in, basically, and left little room for dissenting opinion.
The full statement is below, courtesy of Tim Bontemps of the New York Post:
I look at this from two perspectives – as a current owner and a former player. As an owner, I’m obviously disgusted that a fellow team owner could hold such sickening and offensive views. I’m confident that Adam Silver will make a full investigation and take appropriate action quickly. As a former player, I’m completely outraged. There is no room in the NBA - or anywhere else - for the kind of racism and hatred that Mr. Sterling allegedly expressed. I am appalled that this type of ignorance still exists within our country and at the highest levels of our sport. In a league where the majority of players are African-American, we cannot and must not tolerate discrimination at any level.
The statement should carry enormous weight given who they're coming from. Not only is Jordan an African-American owner of an NBA team, but he's also the league's most iconic ex-player. Further, he's generally kept his opinions on political matters close to the chest, famously saying "Republicans buy shoes too" as a reason not to take sides on issues.
Between Jordan, LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and President Barack Obama, some of the biggest and most influential names in basketball and all of America have spoken up on the issue now. And they're all taking a very similar stance.
Commissioner Adam Silver has said that the league will move swiftly to verify that it is Sterling on the tape and that it has not been altered, and from there the league hopes to have a resolution within a few days.
You can catch up on more details, reactions and legal ramifications in the storyline below.