An Instagram picture is what started this whole mess. Magic Johnson and an “associate” of Clippers owner Donald Sterling took a picture together. That then entailed the phone message where the accused racist remarks were said.

Racism is, in no way, shape, or form, allowed or acceptable in society at any point, especially from the owner in a league where the majority of players and coaches are African American.  It’s even worse when you rent out apartments in Los Angeles and the majority of the tenants are minorities as well.  Sterling is in the wrong league and the wrong decade if he believes his racist attitudes are okay.

Moreover, Sterling completely ruined his team’s chances at gaining a title.  This distraction was blatantly evident in the Clippers’ play.  They were off, they were lazy with the ball, and their thoughts were elsewhere.  Golden State capitalized brilliantly and went up a game in the series.  I doubt they will slow down.  Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson aren’t going to let that happen.

Most importantly, what NBA Commissioner Adam Silver did was not nearly what Donald Sterling deserved.  While Silver did all he could legally do, this brings up a fatal point about the NBA today.  It is controlled by the owners.  There are no checks and balances within each individual organization to temper the power of an owner.  If you have as crappy of an owner as the Clippers did in Donald Sterling, there is no way to get rid of him.  Silver’s actions were correct insofar as they went – a maximum fine and a lifetime ban from basketball.  It halted possible protests at the Staples Center.  You might say it rebooted the Clippers to get a win at home and go up 3-2 over the Warriors.

Racism is a problem and will always be a problem.  No matter how much success the civil rights movement of the 60’s carries over to today, there will always be racism, in everyday life as well as sports.  Ever since Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in ’47, it has been an ever-present issue in sports.  However you feel about race and the color of someone’s skin pigment is your opinion, but showing the general respect that every human deserves must come along with that.  Otherwise, what does that say about us?  We all have the same body parts.  We just look different because of genetics and the fact that our ancestors came from different parts of the earth.  If ignorance still keeps some people from seeing this simple truth, I don’t want to know where our society is headed.