Comments made by the Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling are "incredibly offensive racist" according to US President Barrack Obama who coincidentally is of African heritage.
"When ignorant folks want to advertise their ignorance, you don't really have to do anything; you just let them talk," he added. The President last summer took from personal experience when asked of Donald Sterling having much avoided any race relations during his first term as being the first black US President. Now Sterling's racist comments have put the NBA in a bad light.
Being an NBA fan himself, Obama is confident that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will address the matter. He said that the NBA has "...a lot of African American players, it's steeped in African American culture. And I suspect that the NBA is going to be deeply concerned in resolving this."
Although the NBA still has to confirm the authenticity of the controversial audio tape, NBA Commissioner has called the tape "disturbing and offensive". In the recording, of which Sterling is being suspected of is posted on the website of TMZ, a male voice questions his girlfriend's frequent association with African Americans. TMZ has reported the woman to be V. Stiviano who is of African American and Mexican descent.
The man asks Stiviano not to flaunt in social media her association with black people or bring black people to games. The man specifically mentions former Los Angeles Lakers player and Hall of Famer Magic Johnson on the recording, saying, "Don't bring him to my games, OK?"
The firestorm that has happened to the LA Clippers after the release of the tapes can be evident. Magic Johnson has stated that he will "never watch an LA Clippers game while Sterling is the owner" and encourages fans alike to stage a boycott especially during the playoff season.
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