Sterling vows to fight bid to strip him of Clippers
Guggenheim, Geffen group plan joint bid for the LA team
LOS ANGELES, May 28, (Agencies): Donald Sterling on Tuesday vowed to fight the NBA’s “illegal” efforts to terminate his ownership of the Los Angeles Clippers.
Sterling met the NBA’s deadline for a response to its charge of racist conduct detrimental to the league, saying the recording of his racially charged remarks that ignited a firestorm in April were illegally made and can’t be used to expel him from the league.
In his letter to the league, posted in full online by USA Today and The Los Angeles Times, Sterling says he’s received offers of more than $2.5 billion for the team, but says a forced sale would result in an “egregious” tax burden for him and his family.
Sterling says that his remarks about African Americans were made in a private conversation with girlfriend V. Stiviano, and that recording them without his knowledge was a crime under California law.
“This was an argument between a jealous man and the woman he loved that should never have left the privacy of the living room,” Sterling says.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver banned Sterling for life from NBA facilities and activities and fined him $2.5 million after the comments were made public via the gossip website TMZ in April.
Silver called for Sterling to be stripped of his ownership of the club — something that requires a vote of three-quarters of the remaining 29 owners.
NBA spokesman Mike Bass said the league had received responses from both Donald Sterling and his wife, Shelly Sterling, on Tuesday, and a hearing on the matter of terminating the current ownership interests of the Clippers remained scheduled for June 3.
“The NBA Board of Governors will meet on June 3 at 1 pm in New York City to hear and vote upon this matter,” Bass said. “Should the Board vote to sustain the charge, the Sterlings’ interests in the Clippers will be terminated and the team will be sold.”
On May 20, the league spelled out its position that Donald Sterling’s actions — in the recorded conversation and in his response to the scandal — “significantly undermine the NBA’s efforts to promote diversity and inclusion, damage the NBA’s relationship with its fans, harm NBA owners, players and Clippers team personnel and impair the NBA’s relationship with marketing and merchandising partners, as well as with government and community leaders.”
Meanwhile, investment bank Guggenheim Partners and a group headed by billionaire David Geffen plan to submit a joint bid for the Los Angeles Clippers pro-basketball team, according to a person with knowledge of the bidding process.
Geffen’s group includes television icon Oprah Winfrey and Oracle Chief Executive Officer Larry Ellison. In 2012, Guggenheim headed a group that included basketball great Magic Johnson and bought the LA Dodgers baseball team for $2.15 billion. Johnson is a part of Geffen’s group as well.
Bids are due on Thursday, according to the person. A decision could be made by the end of the week.
Among the other bidders are former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and billionaire Anthony Ressler. Ressler met with Clipper co-owner Shelly Sterling at a Malibu restaurant last weekend to discuss a potential bid, according to the person.
A spokesman for Guggenheim did not respond to a request for comment. Representatives for Ballmer and Ressler could not be reached immediately.
Clippers owner Donald Sterling, banned from the NBA for racist remarks, handed controlling interest in his team to his wife Shelly Sterling, the co-owner, and she began negotiating with the league to sell the club, Reuters reported on Friday, citing sources.
She also retained Bank of America as investment bankers. John Yiannacopoulos, a spokesman for Bank of America, had no comment.
The NBA has scheduled a hearing for June 3, when Donald Sterling can address the charges to his fellow owners. The league could vote to terminate his ownership of the franchise, which would take a vote by 23 of the other 29 owners, the NBA said in a May 19 press release.