The Los Angeles Clippers have been front and center with the whole Donald Sterling scandal enveloping the NBA playoffs and one question about the situation that came up in Adam Silver's press conference was whether players like Chris Paul or Blake Griffin could be granted free agency if Sterling remains owner and while it's too early to know if that's possible, it's certain that teams like the NY Knicks, Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls, LA Lakers and everyone else in the league would be interested.
There are still a number of questions left to deal with when it comes to the Sterling situation and one that Silver has dropped the hammer, the next step is the owners voting him out and there is a good chance that things could end up contentious or in court. Either way, that's a problem for the NBA, especially if free agents do not want to play for the Clippers as long as Sterling is the owner and that could lead to more action being taken by the league.
Silver was asked about the possibility of the players on Clippers being granted free agency if Sterling remained the owner and while he said that was not something the league was looking into, it could be something that the players push for. While many have tried to say this is a free speech issue, it really isn't one. People are just looking at the wrong target. No one is saying Sterling doesn't have the right to say what he said, even if it was absolutely horrible and despicable, but he cannot be that way in a position of power in the league where he can act on it and where that behavior directly impacts his players and his team's standings in said league.
Paul was pushed to the Clippers in a gift of a move from former commissioner David Stern and now his past actions have been brought into question, as he left Sterling in place with no problems all these years and also sent Paul there after vetoing the Lakers trade. Stern allowed Sterling to remain with no problems and based on his past actions, there's no doubt he would not have went for the lifetime ban.
Paul and Griffin obviously would be huge free agents if they hit the market and same goes for DeAndre Jordan, who has shown off his skills during the playoffs and he is turning into a very good player. Paul would be coveted by everyone and every team in the league, including the Miami Heat to join LeBron James, the Knicks to join Carmelo Anthony and the Lakers to join Kobe Bryant. That would be a massive precedent to set and that is one reason why it likely will not happen. But boy, wouldn't that be interesting,
