National Basketball Association

I am sure it started out as just another regular day for the National Basketball Association. Playoffs underway. Lots of press coverage. Fan excitement. What could be better? What could go wrong? I respond to that with two words: Donald Sterling. Tapes of racist comments he had made previously were suddenly and unexpectedly released to the public. Suddenly, as a result of the apparent attitude of this owner of the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team, the NBA found itself smack dab in the in the middle of a public relations crisis. All eyes became focused on the NBA's hierarchy, particularly commissioner Adam Silver, to see what they and he were going to do about Sterling.


As we now know, with the support of other team owners, Silver took unprecedented and definitive action. Silver issued a lifetime ban against Sterling, slapped a $2.5 million fine against him, and plans to pressure Sterling to sell the team so the sport will be completely rid of this controversial owner. Sterling's views, Silver said, ".....have no place in the NBA." His action, thus far, has received a great deal of public support from entities inside and outside basketball. Even Sterling's own organization, the Clippers, applauded the sanctions levied against their owner. As of this writing, Sterling himself has yet to publically respond to the NBA's decision.


Make no mistake. This flap did represent a major crisis for the NBA. At risk was the entire association's reputation, the loss of significant revenue as a result of a sharp drop in fan support, and a revolt of many of the professionals who play in the NBA, particularly those who play on the Clippers' team. By taking such a no-tolerance stance, Silver has communicated that the NBA has an unshakeable commitment to the value that people - inside and outside professional sports - should be treated with dignity, respect, and fairness. Their handling of this crisis has been spot-on. The result, I predict, is the entire NBA will come out of this with a reputation ever more positive than it did before Sterling decided to share his hateful views.