Blake Griffin, like the rest of the Clippers team, will have to seriously consider their desire to play next season if Donald Sterling remains owner due to a lengthy legal battle.
With Sterling vowing not to pay the $2.5 million fine levied against him by the NBA and a threat to sue the NBA for foregoing his due process, anyone who thought Sterling would just go away is dead wrong.
Sadly it’s the players who will be dragged into the center of all of this as Sterling technically is owner while the two sides feud. When Blake Griffin was asked if he could continue to play for the team with Sterling as owner, his answer seemed rather bleak, via ESPN LA:
“I don’t anticipate that being how it’s going to be,…If it still is, I’ll make a decision then. It’s not something that’s ideal. Personally, I don’t know all the ins and outs of everything. I hear stuff just like everybody else does, but I don’t know what’s really true or not. It’s up to [the league], but I don’t think that’s an ideal situation for us, to start next season with that still going on.”
“Personally, I think the longer it lasts, the worse it’s going to be. I think something should happen and I think it should happen quickly. I think guys need to make decisions. I don’t think anybody wants this to drag out except for one or two people. I think it needs to be swift. We need to make our decision or they need to make their decision or whatever it is and make a change. But, at the same time, we have to be patient. There is a due process that has to happen and I understand that, but I don’t want to keep answering questions about it.”
As the drama only begins to hover over the Clippers, both on the court and off, one wonders how much mental fortitude the team has to pull through what will be a grueling next season.
