Rockets' front office instructs players not to comment on Donald Sterling situation?

This is very true in theory, but difficult in application.

The NBA is a structured organization and there are ways to deal with Sterling that haven't been explored. I don't think we've arrived at the point where a Houston Rockets player is going to verbally step in and fix the situation.

 

are you guys dense? Yes it's a bad situation for the nba, but Rockets forbidding something as controversial as this is to have "focus"

Imagine Howard say something. Now Howard is part of this media circus and will spend time and energy on this. What if he says something wrong? Now hes a huge part of this circus and have to spend time with PR to spin the situation.

I don't mind at all. We're trying to win a championship. Morey is just being a father and telling his boys to stay away from the HIV infested Clipper girls

 

Move along, nothing to see here. There are no racist owners or coaches, just like there are not refs betting in the NBA games.

 

Players also have a right to not comment publicly, which is probably the more tactful, considerate position to take. As a player, you can make it about you and your freedom of speech, or you can focus on supporting the people who are directly affected.

A few questions:

1. If anybody is really a victim of Sterling's comments, wouldn't it be Clippers players who are having to deal with a distraction in the middle of a playoff push??
2. Wouldn't league-wide player comments only fan the flames of that distraction?
3. Wouldn't it abandon a sense of unity with Clippers players for Rockets players to comment on the situation when Clippers players have agreed internally to not comment?
4. With the tables turned, wouldn't Rockets players appreciate the support in the form of the rest of the league minimizing the distraction?

 

Anytime there is a major legal issue the league is about to be in but the facts aren't 100% clear, it's always a good idea to keep it shut at least until more facts come out.

Doc Rivers has spoken to the media, and CP3 has made a statement and he is the player rep for their union and speaks on their behalf. There isn't a point in making a statement to a local reporter or putting something on social media that you can't take back.

I do however think that the players have every right to speak their mind, and the Rockets shouldn't forbid players to speak their mind. However I would SUGGEST making a statement you couldn't take back if things come out that make this situation different. Suggesting and forbidding are two different things.

 

Someone in the organization should step up and make a statement about this. Stay away from anything that might be fodder for a defamation of character suit but make very clear that this type of attitude and behavior has no place in the league or in our larger "culture".

 

I don't see a a big problem with the front office telling our player not to comment. I get that the attention will be on Donald and what he said goes way past the playoffs and winning.

That being said, I feel like anything that can be said is just going to add fuel to a potentially dangerous fire. Saying your opinion on something like that isn't going to make the situation better overall, especially if the opinion is going to be against Donald even if he deserves all the hate. Something a player says can easily get taken out of context. And whatever a player says directly goes to the organization so it would make sense that the Rockets are not trying to get involved.

I think once the commish says what he has to say about it tonight and the full story is out, then Rockets will allow players to talk.

 

If the Clippers win it all, I wonder if we'll see a little of this:

 

This.....^^^^^^^

 

Let the NBA league office deal with it. We all know it's bad and we all know nobody is going to defend him. We all know saying things like that has no place in the NBA.

There's really not much to say.

Let the NBA make statements and do what they gotta do.

 

That's a good point.

Do we have confirmation that anybody within the Rockets organization forbade players from commenting? Are we just working off the Sam Amick tweet that says they were "told not to comment" without specifying who told them or how?

 

Understand this is a serious situation and the league will take care of it. It's not the Rockets organization or players responsibility to speak on something that detracts from the goal at hand is getting out of round 1 and working towards a championship.

The Commish is going to make a press statement so lets see what happens next, no need adding fuel to an already blazing bonfire.

 

I'm most often not the type to buy in to conspiracy theories, but this seems to have been a potentially great weapon for anyone who does not have interest in the clippers.

I'm sure if Sterling got caught saying those things on tape (along with his track record of legal issues regarding race relations) that it's not such a surprise that a lot of people with knowledge of the man that he's like that.

Why should this come out now when the Clippers need absolute focus?

 

You do know that has nothing to do with this, right? Just like that Duck Dynasty issue. The government is not forbidding or censoring a Rockets player from speaking about this. Their employer is telling them not to comment.

Sorry, pet peeve of mine after all that A&E/Reobertson garbage.

 

The OP seems to suggest it's a forbid or else type of scenario. If they emailed them all with a suggestion or saying their preference is for you guys to not comment, than there is absolutely nothing wrong with them giving them that advice. Until we see exactly what the Rockets told them we can't really have a solid stance on it either way as fans.

Knowing the Rockets it was probably very politically correct, and not forbidding. If one of the Rockets spoke their mind anyways I can't see the Rockets front office punishing their player cause of it.

 

This. While I agree it's not the time to dive into the ****storm that is the Clippers right now, we have no idea what they were asked, told or recommended to do, not do, or avoid.

 

why do we need to know what the players feel about sterling. just concentrate on game 4 and send the series back to houston even!

 

Well, maybe it should be confronted so it wont be a distraction. I think racism is bigger than basketball and when a black athlete has a chance to speak out against racism, then they should be allowed to. I understand the need to respond prudently and not have a knee jerk reaction until the facts come out. Doc Rivers handled the questions, and I understand basketball players have a job to do, but at the same time, when given an opportunity people shouldn't be held in silence especially given the significance of racism. People who suffer racism become a victim of this if its allowed to exist without others being able to speak out against it. Like the comment i quoted, when people are silent when encountering racism, it almost approves and keeps it alive.

 

I don't know how many of you have seen this... but this is the audio recording of Donald Sterling saying what he said:

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