The NBA came close to a watershed moment yesterday when they were announcing the punishment for Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver after an in-depth investigation into allegations of improper workplace conduct were levied against the team owner. The last time allegations of sexism and racism were made against a team owner, it happened with Donald Sterling of the LA Clippers, and Adam Silver moved swiftly to ban Sterling from the NBA and force him to sell his team.
With Sarver, the NBA found proof of the owner saying the n-word and behaving inappropriately at the workplace but punished him by fining him $10 million and suspending him for a year. This has led to a Suns employee coming out and speaking to Baxter Holmes of ESPN and revealing how this decision made her feel and how angry she was at the NBA for not standing behind its values.
“It’s barely a slap on the wrist and shows us the league truly doesn’t stand for diversity, equity or inclusion. I’m grateful to have the validation after being told I was insane, a bitch, and being dramatic. That definitely lets me breathe a little. But I’m angry. The league failed us when they had the opportunity to stand behind its values.”
Baxter Holmes joins NBA Today with reporting on Robert Sarver. One current employee told @Baxter today: “I cannot express to you how mad and disappointed people are at the spineless nature of the NBA’s decision.” pic.twitter.com/dRDxl9Egqv
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) September 13, 2022
What’s Next For Sarver And The Suns?
The Phoenix Suns are coming off a record-setting year in terms of regular season wins and their performance on the court allowed a lot of this negative attention to be swept under the rug. But now that this has come out in the offseason, many people will question the legitimacy of Sarver as an owner.
Players may be unwilling to play for an openly racist owner, considering a majority of the players are African-American. They currently employ Chris Paul, who openly denounced Donald Sterling when he was a member of the Clippers. While CP3 has been quiet on this issue, it is fair to assume that they are having a tough time dealing with this as well.
Players have a lot of power in this league, so Sarver could pay the price of his team not being a free agent destination as long as he is there. It also opens them up to the risk of losing players they draft early, but from the looks of things, Sarver will be back in a position of power after he serves his 1-year suspension.
