Robert Sarver, who was suspended for a year and fined $10 million for misbehaviour at work, said on Wednesday that he intends to sell the Phoenix Suns and Mercury.
Sarver, who was caught using the “N-word” at least five times and making lewd, sex-related remarks to workers, claimed that selling the teams was due to the “present harsh atmosphere.”
In a statement, Sarver said, “As a man of religion, I believe in atonement and the road to forgiveness. “I anticipated that the one-year commissioner’s punishment would give me the opportunity to concentrate, make atonement, and remove my own controversy from the clubs that I and a lot of other people support.
However, it has sadly become apparent that it is no longer feasible in our present merciless society and that any good I have done, or may still do, is negated by things I have said in the past.
This most recent assertion contrasts with Sarver’s response to ESPN’s Baxter Holmes’ original revelation about Sarver’s improper behaviour at work in November 2021.
The NBA’s investigation supported many of the specifics in ESPN’s article.
Sarver, though, issued his own comment after the report’s first publication, labelling it “misleading,” “inaccurate,” and “wrong.”
The misleading reporting from Baxter Holmes continues to astound me, Sarver remarked. “Let me be clear: The n-word is not in my vocabulary, despite the fact that there is so much that is incorrect and misrepresented in this narrative that I scarcely know where to start.
I have never used the n-word or referred to any individual or group of individuals using that term, either vocally or in writing. I avoid using the term.
A third party probe, which Sarver stated “may prove to be our sole avenue for clearing my name and the reputation of an institution of which I’m so extremely proud,” is something he would “welcome,” he said.
The 60-year-old businessman claimed he disagreed with some of the details of the probe, but apologised and said he’d use the suspension to learn when the NBA revealed Sarver’s sentence earlier this month (the NBA also mandated he take a workplace conduct training).
It’s a startling change from his passionate denial that he ever done anything wrong to his assertion that he deserves the chance to develop.
However, whether Sarver really regrets his behaviour is up for debate. Sarver reportedly disputed with the notion that his acts warranted a yearlong sentence and a $10 million punishment, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Holmes. “Acrimonious” was how Wojnarowksi and Holmes characterised the sentencing procedure.
According to the findings of the independent inquiry into Sarver, his actions were “sophomoric” efforts at comedy rather than being racist or sexist. Sarver acted, according to investigators, “as if workplace rules and procedures did not apply to him.”
Nevertheless, a lot of people in the NBA believed Sarver got off easy and shouldn’t keep running the Suns. According to LeBron James, Sarver has no place in the NBA.
Draymond Green suggested that a vote among the league’s owners be held to end Sarver’s ownership. Jahm Najafi, the minority owner and vice chairman of the Suns, demanded Sarver’s resignation in a statement.
Despite the fact that Sarver may feel like a victim of the cancel culture, many would say that he is still getting off easy since he stands to reap hundreds of millions from the sale of the clubs.