That's great that Maggette, Brand, Kaman and those guys chipped in for the surgery. Class acts.

Donald Sterling is a piece of ****.

Donald Sterling to pay $2.725 million to settle housing discrimination lawsuit [Updated]
Comments (91) (260)(1)November 3, 2009 | 9:54 am
Los Angeles Clippers owner and real estate mogul Donald T. Sterling has agreed to pay a record $2.725 million to settle allegations that he discriminated against African Americans, Hispanics and families with children at scores of apartment buildings he owns in and around Los Angeles.

The settlement, which must be approved by U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer, is the largest ever obtained by the Justice Department in a housing discrimination case involving apartment rentals, officials said.

If approved, the settlement would also resolve a pair of lawsuits by former tenants of Sterling who alleged they were discriminated against because of their race.

[Updated at 1:10 p.m.: In the court documents describing the agreement, Sterling and his wife, Rochelle, deny any wrongdoing. They describe the agreement as "a compromise of disputed claims" and not an admission of any liability.]

Under the agreement, Sterling and his wife would pay $2.625 million to a fund for people who were harmed by their discriminatory practices, officials said. They would also pay a $100,000 penalty to the government.

“The magnitude of this settlement demonstrates our commitment to vigorously prosecute violations of the Fair Housing Act,” Thomas E. Perez, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said in a statement. “With tight mortgage credit and rising foreclosures, it is more important than ever that minorities not face discrimination when renting apartments.”

The Justice Department sued the Sterlings three years ago, accusing them of favoring Korean tenants while seeking to exclude blacks and families with children. Through their Beverly Hills Properties, the Sterlings own and manage about 119 apartment buildings with some 5,000 units in Los Angeles County, according to the Justice Department.

In court filings, Justice Department lawyers presented evidence that the Sterlings made statements “indicating that African Americans and Hispanics were not desirable tenants and that they preferred Korean tenants” occupy buildings they owned in Koreatown.

Had the case gone to trial, an expert would have testified that an analysis of the Sterlings' rental practices in Koreatown revealed that they rented to far fewer African Americans and Hispanics than would be expected, based on demographics. As part of the settlement, the Sterlings will be required to pay for an independent contractor to monitor their employees' compliance with the Fair Housing Act over the next three years. The results of the tests would be reported to the Sterlings and to the government.

-- Scott Glover

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/11/donald-sterling-to-pay-2725-million-to-settle-housing-discrimination-lawsuit.html

mreinman wrote:That was/is a truly moving story. I felt anger then sadness and compassion. This cannot make sense on the Clippers or the NBA's part. I wonder what Sterling and the head of the NBA Reich, David (Don Corlione) would say to this.

I guess I too feel sadness and compassion and feel good about what the players did for this assistant coach.

The guy has been an assistant for 5+ years and was also an NBA player for at least 5 years or so.

For me this begs the question: Why does he need a handout over something that costs $70K? I thought that assistants prob make upwards of at least $100K a year, probably more realistically $200k. Why didn't he have health insurance that covers this kind of thing at his age? And if the Clippers didn't offer that type of insurance, why wouldn't he have looked into this sort of thing a long time ago? Or go to another team or college?

Very odd.

Donald Sterling ignorant of Elgin Baylor?
ESPNLosAngeles.com

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling said during Elgin Baylor's wrongful termination civil trial Tuesday that he didn't know the accomplished basketball pedigree of his former general manager before hiring Baylor as vice president of player personnel in 1986, according to a Los Angeles Times report.

In response to a line of questions concerning Baylor's Hall of Fame playing career from Baylor attorney Carl Douglas, Sterling denied any knowledge of it, according to the Times report.

"I didn't know [about] that," Sterling said, according to the newspaper. "I hired him for $3,000 a month. I didn't really know what his role was. ... He was working in a mail-order company back then."

Sterling also testified Tuesday that Baylor determined his own annual salary and had free rein to do as he pleased with decisions concerning the coaching staff and player transactions, according to the Los Angeles Times report.

On March 4, Baylor dropped part of his wrongful termination lawsuit against the Clippers, according to multiple reports. While the former Clippers general manager dropped allegations of racial discrimination, he is still going ahead with claims of age discrimination against the team.

Team officials say Baylor resigned in October 2008 after 22 years with the team. But Baylor, who is black, claimed in his 2009 lawsuit that he was "discriminated against and unceremoniously released from his position with the team on account of his age and his race." Baylor, who is 76, claimed he was "grossly underpaid during his tenure with the Clippers."