Los Angeles Clippers president and coach Doc Rivers would step down from his post if Donald Sterling will regain ownership of the franchise, reports confirmed on Wednesday.
Clippers interim CEO Dick Parsons testified in the trial on Tuesday and he confirmed that Rivers is not willing to continue coaching the Clippers if the pending sale will not be approved.
ESPN reported that Parsons was called to testify about the possible uncertainty that could arise should the court decide to junk the $2 billion sale of the Clippers to former Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer.
Parsons said that Rivers would immediately step down once the court grants Sterling's request to shelve the sale, which could eventually lead to a disaster for the franchise.
"If Doc were to leave, that would be a disaster," Parsons said. "Doc is the father figure of the team. Chris (Paul) is the on-court captain of the team. But Doc is really the guy who leads the effort. He's the coach, the grown-up, he's a man of character and ability -- not just in a basketball sense, but in the ability to connect with people and gain their trust. The team believes in him and admires and loves him. If he were to bail, with all the other circumstances, it would accelerate the death spiral."
Sterling's lawyer, Bobby Samini, reportedly questioned Parsons' statement on Rivers' thinking, saying that only the veteran coach could give such statement. Samini questioned why the court decided to call Parsons as witness instead of Rivers and the players.
"I don't understand why they didn't call Doc Rivers and the players they want to call to give that testimony," Samini said. "I understand Mr. Parsons had an opinion about what might happen, but they could've easily brought those individuals in to give that testimony themselves."
ESPN Los Angeles also confirmed that Sterling filed a new lawsuit against the National Basketball Association, commissioner Adam Silver, and his wife, Shelly Sterling, for their attempt to sell the franchise without his consent.
"The new lawsuit states the seller of the team is not Donald, and it's not Shelly - the seller of the team is the corporation that owns the team, and that's LAC Basketball Club Inc.," Samini said in a statement. "When Donald bought the team, the shares of the corporation are only in Donald's name."
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