NBA News September 16th, 2022 – LA Lakers Signing

The Robert Sarver saga is still the main news in the NBA. It was a couple of days ago when the NBA released a statement on September 14th, 2022 regarding the matter. Since then, numerous basketball personalities have offered their take on the Robert Sarver situation. One of the most recent to hit the news was on September 16th when an NBPA executive director weighed in with a call to ban Sarver from the NBA for life:

“We are absolutely calling for that [lifetime ban]. We do not want him to be in a position where he is managing or engaging with individuals who are engaging with our players or the players themselves. We are absolutely clear from the findings that are in the report that we do not want him to be in that position.”

Tamika Tremaglio – interview on ESPN’s NBA Today

NBA News – Recapping the NBA’s Statement

The four main points that were communicated when the NBA released the statement on Sarver were as follows:

• Sarver was to serve a one-year suspension
• He, in effect, needed to be trained on how to behave properly in the workplace
• He has to pay a $10,000,000 fine
• The Phoenix Suns, the team Sarver owns, will be under increased scrutiny

The fallout in Phoenix could be immense. In more recent news on the matter, there was a minority owner that was calling for Sarver to resign. Phoenix Suns vice chairman and minority owner Jahm Najafi, the team’s second-largest stakeholder, called for majority owner Robert Sarver’s resignation in an open letter to team employees released on Thursday night, saying there should be “zero tolerance” for lewd, misogynistic, and racist conduct in any workplace.

Phoenix Suns vice chairman and minority owner Jahm Najafi, the team’s second-largest stakeholder, called for majority owner Robert Sarver’s resignation in an open letter to team employees released on Thursday night, saying there should be “zero tolerance” for lewd, misogynistic and racist conduct in any workplace.

Baxter Holmes writing at ESPN on September 15th, 2022

Previously, Lebron James weighed in on the situation. As King James saw it, the NBA got it wrong with dealing with Sarver. It seemed that LeBron felt that the suspension should have been longer.

Other NBA Headlines

• Michael Jordan sold a jersey for $10.1 million (that’s enough to pay Sarver’s fine with $100K left over!)
• NBA refs got a new collective bargaining agreement
• The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly signed Dennis Schroder to a contract extension (one year and $2.64 million)

The tip-off for the NBA’s regular season is still over a month away. October 18th is when games start with a host or preseason games before that time. NBA fans should stay tuned for number crunching, win-total discussions, futures/ante-post articles, and trade news in the weeks ahead.