Nelson Mandela once said,”No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.” With the news breaking over the weekend of the alleged comments by Donald Sterling, owner of the LA Clippers, racism is again a hot topic with every news outlet. In case you missed it, here’s the tape: http://deadspin.com/exclusive-the-extended-donald-sterling-tape-1568291249. It’s honestly quite disturbing to me that it’s 2014 and we’re still talking about people based on the color of their skin. It’s truly appalling and disgusting that a person like that is a successful businessman and NBA team owner.

Adam Silver had his first major task as Commissioner of the NBA. How does one handle such a situation? Over the weekend, there was plenty of public outrage. There were signs and memes at games and online mocking of what Sterling had to say. While funny, it’s also sad that it was a big deal to bring someone of a different race to the game with you. Several sponsorships of the team were withdrawn after Sterling came out to say he was taken out of context but never denied that was his voice. The Clippers had to play a game on Sunday, which included a subtle protest with inside out warm ups and black socks and armbands. They got beat badly, and many aren’t sure how they even managed to go out on the court. This was also a horrible situation for their head coach, Doc Rivers, who’s family home was burned to the ground in 1997 because of hatred based on the color of their skin. In addition to the actions by the team, former players and owners are also speaking out about such an ugly incident for the league to deal with during what should be their best PR of the season.

Before I get into the decision from today, here’s a little about 80-year-old Sterling. He was born to Jewish immigrants as Donald Tokowitz but chose to change his name as an adult. He’s a former attorney and currently the longest tenured owner in the league. He got married in 1957 but also had a girlfriend who leaked the tapes as part of a battle since they’ve broken up. The infidelity plus ignorance is an absolutely disgusting combo for me. Ironically, he was scheduled to get a lifetime achievement award from the NAACP (and has previously received 2 awards from them) even though he’s been sued multiple times for racial discrimination. They have since rescinded the honor – which was probably only being given thanks to donations or other financial considerations, not the merit of the man. Former Clippers players have also talked about the verbal abuse they endured while playing on the team. Yes, everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but a line was crossed in the comments he made. A man like this has no place in society today and the decision made by the league is a huge first step in ridding it of such garbage.

After spending the weekend reviewing evidence and validating the tapes, the NBA dropped the hammer. The decision by the commissioner was basically the death penalty for a owner – the maximum fine of $2.5 million and a lifetime ban for the NBA. This was a bold move, but necessary for someone who has repeatedly used his money to cover up for actions like this in the past. Commissioner Silver explained that the owners have the authority to oust a fellow owner as long as ¾ of the ownership groups agree – which he doesn’t expect to be a problem. There will be plenty of suitors for the team and the rich racist will get one last payday before he disappears from sports. I give major props to the commissioner for doing the right thing, even if it was a little shocking. The NBA has tried for a long time to not let discrimination be an issue and this was a big step to keep it that way.

Tonight, the Clippers will play their first home game since the incident and are back in LA with the series tied 2-2. I’m sure there will be a lot of emotions going on for the coach and team as they try to focus on their goals and also have to be excited to now longer be playing for an owner who thought so lowly of them. With this ugly mess behind them and steps being taken in the right direction, I hope the team and fans can move past the hate of the past weekend and again love the sport and its players.