Donald Sterling Will Not Pay the $2.5 Million Fine Handed Down by the NBA

After a tough loss to the Rockets in the 2009 Playoffs, one reporter wondered if Phil Jackson was embarrassed by a loss.

Image via USA TODAY Sports

Earlier tonight, the NBA received a letter from Donald Sterling's lawyer Max Blecher which informed the league that the Los Angeles Clippers owner would not be paying the $2.5 million fine handed down by commissioner Adam Silver. In the letter, Blecher maintains that "no punishment is warranted," and "his 'due process rights' were violated by the league's four-day investigation." This action by Sterling's attorney could very well mean that a lawsuit filed against the NBA is coming down the pipeline. As for the NBA, Sterling's refusal to pay up "provides additional ground for termination of franchise under Article 13(c)," according to NBA analyst Nate Duncan. 

Either way, the NBA will get 2.5 milli out of Sterling because as ESPN's Brian Windhorst points out, the league "will just withhold it from TV payout money." 

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RELATED: Donald Sterling's History as a Terrible Person

[via ESPN]

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