On Tuesday, September 13, the NBA announced that Robert Sarver, owner of WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury and NBA’s Phoenix Suns, was fined $10 million and suspended from the league for a year following an investigation into inappropriate remarks and workplace misconduct. The disciplinary action demonstrates the NBA and WNBA’s commitment to a safer and more respectful basketball community.
A report commissioned by the NBA in the fall of 2021 found that Sarver had repeatedly engaged in sexual misconduct with both male and female employees, made racist comments towards employees of color, sex-related comments in the workplace, and inappropriate remarks regarding the physical appearance of female employees and other women.
Sarver apologized for his actions in a statement on September 21. He said, “Words that I deeply regret now overshadow nearly two decades of building organizations that brought people together – and strengthened the Phoenix area – through the unifying power of professional men’s and women’s basketball.” Suns guard Chris Paul and Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James both criticized the NBA’s punishment as insufficient, saying they were “horrified and disappointed” and describing Sarver’s behavior as “atrocious,” respectively.
Sarver said that an “unforgiving [public] climate” has made it nearly impossible for him to make up for his actions. Thus, he has begun the process of selling the Suns and Mercury teams. NBA commissioner Adam Silver and Suns Legacy Partners, the ownership group of the Phoenix Suns and the Phoenix Mercury, claimed that Sarver’s decision to give up his position was the best choice for the organization, the NBA and the WNBA community. In a statement published on September 14, Cathay Engelbert, the WNBA’s Commissioner, said the league will continue to uphold the values of diversity and inclusion. She supported Sarver’s decision to sell the Phoenix Mercury, calling his fine and suspension “appropriate and necessary.”
Racism, misogyny, sexism, and other misconduct in the NBA and the WNBA should continue to be dealt with seriously to prevent situations like this from happening again. In 2014, Donald Sterling, the Los Angeles Clippers owner, was banned for life by the NBA and forced to sell the franchise after being recorded on tape making racist remarks. The recurrence of these alarming issues demonstrate the importance of publicly reiterating the standards of the NBA and WNBA to ensure that these problems of misconduct will not continue in the future.
