Being A Leader is Tough

Christie Blatchford: Adam Silver the rare leader who did the right thing with conviction in punishing Donald Sterling

So rare is it in the modern world to see a leader — in government, business, public or private sector or anywhere in between — do the right thing with conviction that it is almost unrecognizable when it happens.

Enter Adam Silver, the new NBA commissioner, who Tuesday announced that the disgraced Los Angeles Clippers’ owner, Donald Sterling, is immediately banned for life from any association with the team he owns and the NBA — banned from games, practices, buildings, team meetings and decisions and board of governor activities. He also fined Mr. Sterling the maximum $2.5-million allowable under league rules and pledged to do everything he can to convince the board of governors to force a sale of the team.

And, Mr. Silver said, “I fully expect to get the support I need.”

Given that this story broke only last weekend, when Mr. Sterling’s ghastly ramblings were first released to a couple of gossip websites, and that the NBA first had to conduct at least a semblance of an investigation, chiefly to confirm that it was indeed Mr. Sterling’s voice heard on the tape excerpts, this is a speedy and harsh reaction to the storm of outrage wrought by Mr. Sterling’s remarks.

Now outrage is the mother’s milk of social media and the wired planet, true, but this time it was warranted.

Credit: Christie Blatchford, National Post