Donald Sterling was banned from the NBA for life. What the Phoenix Suns’ Robert Sarver did was worse, but earned him a slap on the wrist. The league simply must do better
Amid the backlash to what many interpreted as an inadequate punishment and a slap on the wrist for Phoenix Suns governor Robert Sarver, NBA commissioner Adam Silver held a news conference Wednesday to explain how he and the league’s Board of Governors came to their decision. Many were left wondering if a one-year suspension and a $10m fine for a billionaire practically equated to about $100, a vacation and being able to return as if nothing happened. Many felt that Sarver didn’t need a timeout, but instead should have received the same fate as Donald Sterling, the disgraced former Los Angeles Clippers governor who was banned from the NBA for life.
While Silver did describe Sarver’s behavior as “indefensible” and formally apologized to the current and former employees who were the victims of Sarver’s workplace misconduct, he also maintained that Sarver’s pattern of incidents were completely different than the Donald Sterling situation and therefore weren’t comparable.
