The Don Sterling controversy came to light via TMZ, and quickly everybody asked for his sacking. At the time, players were even asked to protest, as it was much more than the game. Ultimately, Commissioner Adam Silver banned Sterling from the NBA for a lifetime and also imposed a $2.5 million fine, which was the maximum amount levied at the time. It was not an easy time for Silver as he was only 2 months into the job. Similarly, it wasn’t easy for the players representing the Los Angeles Clippers, one of them being Blake Griffin.

Speaking about the whole ordeal on Mike Jackson’s Podcast, the 6x NBA All-Star explained the player’s situation. Facing the Warriors in the first-round playoffs, the Clippers were fresh after winning the game 3. Before sleeping on Friday night; the team got together and coach Doc Rivers told the team, “Apparently TMZ got a hold of some recording.” It was the next morning that Blake Griffin and the whole team got to know about the contents of the recordings. Ultimately, the talks about the protest were gaining momentum.

The Clippers players decided otherwise. “We come together and we’re like dude, we work this hard and we got to this point in the playoffs.” He continued on Why not Me? With Mike Jackson, “People were asking us to protest, and the NBA was, I think, they were very scared that we were going to protest.”

The team never felt that the owner was part of the family, as per Blake Griffin. “So we decide we’re like ‘no fu** that we’re playing.’ Like we didn’t do all this just to get here and then we protest, it’s a loss.” But, the players instead opted for a silent protest. Instead, they covered up their Clippers logo and decided to play on.

The Clippers would lose the game 4 away, but the game 5 at home was different. As per Blake Griffin, the crowd blacked out the team’s banner, and every one of the fans was wearing black as a sign of protest. And the 35-year-old called it “emotional like roller coaster of that series was nuts.”

Just like Blake Griffin, Adam Silver was unsure about the protest

On the Old Man and the Three Podcast, the commissioner spoke about the situation in 2014. “Just as a reminder to people, how quickly it all unfolded – I heard the tape for the first time on Saturday morning (it was posted by TMZ in the middle of the night) and I banned Sterling for life by Tuesday.”

Silver also revealed that during the time, he was new to the job and got help from the previous commissioner. He listened to the Players Association and called it a partnership decision. Claiming that he never felt threatened by the players to make the right decision, “I don’t remember ever feeling threatened in a way…that unless you do this, this is going to be the outcome.”

Back in 2019, NBA Insider Ramona Shelburne spoke with Esquire and said that she was unsure if any owner could get banned. She further sided with Silver that the final judgment wouldn’t have changed despite any player boycott. Many players have since then spoken about their turmoil under Sterling.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.