LeBron & Adam Silver Spoke on Sarver’s Punishment

Following an inquiry that revealed racist and sexist workplace behaviour, the NBA on Tuesday suspended Phoenix Suns and Mercury owner Robert Sarver for a year and levied a record $10 million punishment against him, according to league officials.

Sarver will not be allowed into any NBA or WNBA structures for the upcoming season, “including any office, arena, or practice facility,” the league said in a statement.

The NBA stated that he also wouldn’t be permitted to take part in any NBA or WNBA events, represent the teams in any manner, be involved in any basketball or team-related activities, or hold any positions of authority within the league.

According to the investigation, Sarver, who has managed the franchise for 18 years, “repeated the N-word at least five times” when retelling other people’s allegations.

Additionally, according to the NBA, he was discovered to have “engaged in instances of unjust conduct with female employees, made several sex-related comments in the workplace, and made inappropriate comments regarding the physical attractiveness of female employees and other women.”

According to the study, Sarver had a long history of acting in a way that upset women who work for the team and making sexually inappropriate remarks.

The NBA stated that the $10 million fine is the largest financial penalty and the utmost permitted under league rules.

LeBron On Sarver’s Punishment

LeBron James, a forward with the Los Angeles Lakers, blasted the NBA on September 14 for not being harsh enough in its penalty of Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver for using racist slurs and treating female employees unfairly

Following an independent inquiry into claims of workplace misconduct, Sarver, who acquired the Suns and the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA in 2004, was given a one-year NBA suspension and fined $10 million on Tuesday.

James, a four-time NBA champion and the league’s public face, claimed to have read the Sarver tale several times and believes that, regardless of the offender’s status, the league should not tolerate such behavior.

“Our league definitely got this wrong. I don’t need to explain why. Y’all read the stories and decide for yourself,” James wrote on Twitter. “I said it before and I’m gonna say it again, there is no place in this league for that kind of behavior.

“I love this league and I deeply respect our leadership. But this isn’t right. There is no place for misogyny, sexism, and racism in any work place. Don’t matter if you own the team or play for the team. We hold our league up as an example of our values and this aint it.”

Adam Silver’s Thoughts On The Punishment

Silver gave his reasoning for thinking that his circumstances are much worse than Sarver’s.

“The circumstances are vastly different for me. What we witnessed in the Donald Sterling case was blatantly racist behavior targeted at a particular set of people, “Adam in NYC spoke to the media.

Additionally, Silver expressed regret to former and present Suns/Mercury employees and talked about how shocked he was to learn of the allegations against Sarver.

“I was in disbelief to a certain extent about what I learned had transpired over the last 18 years in the Suns organization. I was saddened by it, disheartened, I want to again apologize to the former and in some cases current employees of the Phoneix Suns for what they had to experience, there’s absolutely no excuse for it, and we addressed it.”

 

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