Image courtesy of Keith Allison/Flickr.
Shelly Sterling has the misfortune of being married to one of the biggest pariahs in the entire country. The marriage appears to be nothing more than a legality at this time, as having a mistress is not exactly something that can be explained to your wife.
This is a horrible situation for Shelly Sterling. Instead of getting out of the public view, she has continued to attend Los Angeles Clippers games after her husband’s ban from the NBA. Some may see this as strong, as she has vocally supported the players.
“Strong” may be one way to describe her actions, but she is simply being a distraction to the team that she claims to love.
It’s a great thing to express this admiration, but she also made it clear that she still has an ownership stake in the Clippers. Love is not the same as the exorbitant amount of money she gets from being a part-owner of the team.
As much as she would like to talk about her feelings about the Clips, this is a business decision, which is completely understandable. She technically did nothing wrong, and can be seen as a victim of sorts due to the revelation that her husband had a mistress. However, this hardly feels like a shocking discovery and it may be a good thing for her since her husband is a horrible human being, to put it nicely.
Shelly Sterling needs to understand when controversies like this occur, the family’s name is tarnished. That is just a fact that carries on throughout time. Even though their situations are different in nature, the Sterling name can take on the stigma of a Madoff or Sandusky in the sense that the name will instantly draw thoughts to the one who made it negative in the first place.
This is unfortunate for them, but it is just something that happens in situations like this. The best course of action is to move on and maybe even get a fresh start. That is easier said than done, but the Sterlings have no money issues at this point. The sale of the Clippers would get over a billion dollars, and Shelly Sterling could end up with over $500 million from the sale. Based on no calculations, that should be enough to set her family up for a comfortable life going forward.
There is nothing positive that will come about for Sterling if she continues to own the team. New ownership is needed for the Clippers. It is nothing personal against Shelly Sterling herself, but the Sterling name cannot own the Clippers. She should come to this realization because if she truly cares about the players and the fans, she would notice the glaring want, and need, for new ownership.
The issue of forcing someone, and one who really did nothing wrong, to sell their business is a tricky one, but she should see that she is doing more good by selling than holding onto the Clippers. Perhaps she could set up a deal that keeps her on as a very minor owner, but that is really pointless.
Shelly Sterling needs to get on board with the sale of the team, or she will see backlash for the rest of her life.
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