The NBA was looking for a quick band-aid fix to the whole Donald Sterling debacle when Commissioner Adam Silver announced a lifetime ban and other penalties levied against the prejudice owner back in April.
Shelley Sterling has even agreed to sell the team to Steve Ballmer for $2 billion dollars, but unfortunately for the NBA, and most directly the Los Angeles Clippers, Donald Sterling has promised to fight for the rest of his life to maintain control of the team, and he has strong legal grounds to fight for a long, long time.
Multiple reports are also coming out of Los Angeles that many of the players and Coach Doc Rivers have planned to boycott the season if Sterling is still the owner of the team when the season starts. According to ESPN, Superstar point guard Chris Paul has said Sterling owning the team come game time would be "unacceptable".
Paul is not the only one on the team with that sentiment either. He said many of the players feel the same way and that he had also talked to Rivers about the ordeal and a possible boycott.
"That's something me and Doc are both talking about," Paul told ESPN on Thursday, after coaching his AAU program, CP3. "Something has to happen, and something needs to happen soon -- sooner rather than later."
Interim Clippers CEO Dick Parsons also testified earlier in the week in state court that Rivers told him on multiple occasions that he doesn't think he wants to continue coaching the team if Sterling remains in control of the franchise.
Some have speculated that the Los Angeles Lakers are waiting to see what Rivers decides so they can go after him as a coach, if Sterling is able to put up a strong fight. It's doubtful this is the case since the Lakers have interviewed Byron Scott three times for the Job and will probably offer the position to him. The Lakers have not had a coach since the end of April, and are tired of waiting to fill the position.
Closing arguments to determine if Shelly Sterlings selling of the team to Ballmer was legitimate are expected Monday in probate court. If the Judge approves the transaction this is a non-issue; if he doesn't, look for many Clippers to start looking for a way out.
