• Basketball

Clippers owner Sterling receives lifetime ban

NBA chief Adam Silver announces Donald Sterling's punishment © AP

Enlarge

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling has been banned for life by the NBA in response to racist comments the league says he made in a recorded conversation.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced the discipline on Tuesday, saying that Sterling has been fined $2.5 million and that the league will attempt to force a sale of the Clippers.

Silver also stated that Sterling cannot attend any NBA games or practices, be present at any Clippers office or facility, or participate in business or player personnel decisions.

"We stand together in condemning Mr. Sterling's views," Silver said. "They simply have no place in the NBA.

"This league is far bigger than any one owner, any one coach and any one player."

The fine will be donated to organisations dedicated to anti-discrimination and tolerance efforts that will be jointly selected by the NBA and the Players Association, Silver said.

Silver's announcement came three days after the revelation of an audio recording in which Sterling made racist comments to a woman believed to be his girlfriend. Silver confirmed that the voice on the recording was Sterling's.

"The views expressed by Mr. Sterling are deeply offensive and harmful," Silver said.

The woman on the recording co-operated with the NBA, as did a third person who was in the room when the tape was made, a source told ESPN.com's Ramona Shelburne. The woman verified to the league that it was her and Sterling on the tapes, according to the source.

The recordings that have been released were made last September, the source said.

This article first appeared on ESPN.com

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd