UPDATE: So the Clippers took the subtle route today in taking a stand against their racist owner after supposedly nixing the idea of any kind of protest because they didn't want to look like radicals.
I'm still calling weak sauce on this and here's why:
Everybody (President Obama, Lebron and even Michael Jordan) is rightfully condemning LA Clippers owner and legendary racist Donald "Massa Epps" Sterling for his latest bigoted ramblings and the NBA for tolerating his history of hatefulness. But you know who else deserves some scorn? The men who play for the LA Clippers, especially Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and Deandre Jordan, as well as their coach, Doc Rivers.
Why the scorn for the players who just seem to be caught in the cross hairs? Because they had an opportunity to stand against Sterling's vitriol and send a message to the NBA and the world that people like Donald Sterling have no place in the NBA in 2014. A stand by the Clippers could have been the catalyst for removing the cancer that Donald Sterling is and always will be from ownership of the team. They could have boycotted the game they're playing today against the Golden State Warriors, but according to various reports and interviews with Clips coach Doc Rivers, that idea was quickly dismissed during a team meeting when the story broke on Friday night. It's not like the NBA couldn't reschedule a game or two, but the players gave the NBA a pass, the same league that put Sterling in a position of power in the first place. All the Clippers want to do is play basketball.
I'm sorry, but just wanting to keep your head down and play basketball is the mentality of a child, and the last time I checked, the Clippers roster is composed of men in the their 20s and 30s. By not using their collective power to affect positive change for their team and the NBA, the Clippers have basically said that as long as they get their millions and the Larry O'Brien trophy, nothing else matters, not dignity, not self-respect, not being able to look their children in the eye and say that daddy thought about more than just himself when he had the opportunity. Without protests, boycotts, civil disobedience, etc., the Civil Rights Movement wouldn't have happened, and I shudder to think where we would be without it. However, I guess the Clippers missed those lessons in school because all they want to do is play basketball.
The picture above has been making the rounds recently and while tragically funny, it also takes on a new meaning, at least for me, when I digest this ridiculous situation: At least Solomon wanted to be free from Massa Epps. It's hard to read the Clippers' feelings about their plantation owner.
Stay random,
Jay
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