But the story about J.J. Redick and his surreal first season with the Clippers captures the Donald Sterling experience as well as anyone's. At 29 years old and having made the calculated choice as a free agent last summer to come play for coach Doc Rivers and this talented team, Redick was exposed to the Sterling dysfunction from the start when his sign-and-trade deal to come to Los Angeles nearly fell apart after his four-year, $27-million deal had been agreed upon.

One of the alleged reasons? Sterling, the man whose racist comments sparked this whole furor, was believed to have had concerns about paying a white player that kind of money. He had once given white center Chris Kaman a five-year, $52 million deal, and how that contract panned out (or didn't, as Kaman played 195 games in the next four years of that deal and was traded to New Orleans with a year and a half left) appeared to be coloring Sterling's judgment on this deal. In a way, it was a mirror-image of the issue that would be front and center 10 months later.

"I've been told both ways: one, that he didn't want to pay me because I was white, and that he didn't want to pay me because I was a bench player," Redick said.

Oh my God why do you even care?!?

What the hell is this Gabe Kapler interview? First they were talking about that draft pick who busted and ran over a guy, and now he's going on about eating ethically raised animals or something? Bad day to half-listen.

Ya know what's really entertaining?

Dan Bernstein reading scouting reports verbatim from a magazine

It works for all his baseball discussion.

Bernstein is the worse thing to happen to advanced stats since Ben Zobrist

That's sig worthy right there.

I don't want to comment on someone who I haven't seen

Terry Boers

HAVE YOU READ JOE SHEHAN?



This guy is hilarious


Bernstein was 100% correct and still came off like a total jackass

What a terrible debater

That line was classic. Well, I guess if Joe Sheehan says so it must be true. This would effectively end all baseball arguments - just get Joe's thoughts.

You could tell Terry wasn't agreeing with everything Danny was saying but just lacks the will to engage anymore.

I don't want to comment on someone who I haven't seen

Terry Boers

Classic appeal to authority right there. And I only raise that point because Dan seems like the kind of person who would scream "LOGICAL FALLACY" in your face when backed into a corner argument-wise.

Would Dan like me to pull up some quotes from the past couple of decades describing dysfunctional negotiations performed by his hero Jerry Reinsdorf?

"I know you are a functional illiterate while I have negotiated some of the biggest commercial and real estate transactions in the history of this country. I also know you are represented and it would be an ethical violation for me as an attorney to discuss terms with you directly without the express consent of your representative...but, what the hell, here is a below market contract that I am going to try to brow beat you in to signing before you can get any type of consultation on the matter."

I don't want to comment on someone who I haven't seen

Terry Boers