Donald T Sterling

Three decades ago, the Lakers had an unofficial mascot who got too big for his tuxedo. He was an entertaining fan who became so popular, he eventually wanted money to continue being that fan. The Lakers tried paying him but couldn't pay him enough to keep him happy, so he stopped coming to games and eventually faded into anonymity. Remember Dancing Barry? He's about to be joined by Clipper Darrell. The Clippers' unofficial cheerleader, the rotund dancing guy in a red and blue suit named Darrell Bailey, caused a stir this week when he issued a statement on his website claiming that the Clippers, "no longer want me to be Clipper Darrell.… I am devastated!"

Clippers owner Donald Sterling said before the team's Monday night game against the New Orleans Hornets that he hasn't given any thought to making a coaching change. And he sees no reason why Vinny Del Negro won't be the team's coach for the remainder of the season. "I like him," said Sterling. "I usually follow the advice of my people, and I think they care for him, like him and want him to succeed. And I think he will. " An Internet report that suggested Del Negro "has lost the team" and players no longer "want to play hard for him" sparked speculation the coach was another loss or two from being fired.

Donald T. Sterling Sterling World Plaza Beverly Hills. Calif. 90210 Dear Donald, Jenny Diver, oh Sukey Tawdry, look out Miss Lotte Lenya and old Lucy Brown. Yeah, that line forms on the right, babe, now that... Donald's back in town! Forgive me, I'm so overjoyed at the sight of you being you again after all these years of acting like an NBA owner. Look at it from my perspective for once. You were a treasure and then you were gone, or, worse, ordinary.

It was the sigh before the storm. During a joyous couple of hours on the Staples Center court Saturday, the Clippers rediscovered their alley and dug up their oop and sprinted their way to a 101-85 drubbing of the Memphis Grizzlies. Yet during a somber few minutes in his locker-room office afterward, the embattled Vinny Del Negro acknowledged that it might not matter. "We'll see," he said softly. "We need to win. We need to play better. But I don't worry a lot about it, because there are things out of my control.

Sterling is askedfor opinion, unloads More tough love from Clippers owner Donald T. Sterling : If you can't tell from the results, Sterling is a demanding boss who can target bigger game than Baron Davis . ? Like Commissioner David Stern , the boss of bosses. Three sources describe an exchange in an owners meeting in Las Vegas a year or so ago: Sterling: You don't want to hear what I have to say. Stern. Yes, we do. Sterling. No you don't.

Documents filed last week in Elgin Baylor's wrongful termination lawsuit against the Clippers, their owner, Donald T. Sterling, and the NBA offered an extensive look at Baylor's 22-year tenure with the organization. Baylor filed his civil suit in February 2009 in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleging race and age discrimination. A trial date is scheduled for March. On Nov. 5, Sterling's attorneys asked the court for a summary judgment to dismiss the case; a ruling is expected in January.

Only the Clippers, it seems, could be involved in a fight in which a fair outcome is unattainable, and a rooting interest is impossible. It's Elgin Baylor suing Donald Sterling, a fallen general manager charging the falling owner of being racist and cheap, allegations that apparently occurred to Baylor only after working there for more than two decades. One cannot pick sides, only emotions. Sadness comes to mind. How do you back an owner who is now fighting two lawsuits accusing him of racism?

Donald T. Sterling bought the landmark former MGM headquarters in the heart of Beverly Hills, furnishing rooms with French antiques and restoring the detailed bronze elevator doors, sculpted wood wall moldings and parquet floors. But when posh retailer Barneys of New York wanted to lease the choice ground-level space from him, the Los Angeles Clippers owner refused. Except for his own offices on the top two floors, the building he calls Sterling World Plaza is completely empty.

Donald T. Sterling, the son of a pushcart peddler, is worth hundreds of millions of dollars. He runs an empire from his gold-trimmed alabaster-and-marble building in the heart of Beverly Hills that was built by Louis B. Mayer and lives in a mansion on Sunset Boulevard that belonged to Cary Grant. So do they call him Sterling, the entrepreneur? Nope. Sterling is also known for lavish parties and charitable works. So do they call him Sterling, the fabulously wealthy bon vivant and humanitarian?

Los Angeles Clippers owner and real estate mogul Donald T. Sterling and his wife, Rochelle, have agreed to a record settlement of more than $2.7-million regarding allegations that they discriminated against African Americans, Latinos and families with children at scores of apartment buildings they own in and around Los Angeles. The settlement, which must be approved by U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer, is the largest ever obtained by the Justice Department in a housing discrimination case involving apartment rentals, officials said.

Three decades ago, the Lakers had an unofficial mascot who got too big for his tuxedo. He was an entertaining fan who became so popular, he eventually wanted money to continue being that fan. The Lakers tried paying him but couldn't pay him enough to keep him happy, so he stopped coming to games and eventually faded into anonymity. Remember Dancing Barry? He's about to be joined by Clipper Darrell. The Clippers' unofficial cheerleader, the rotund dancing guy in a red and blue suit named Darrell Bailey, caused a stir this week when he issued a statement on his website claiming that the Clippers, "no longer want me to be Clipper Darrell.… I am devastated!"

I believe! Any GP in the same predicament would tell you the same thing. I took a few days this week to visit the grandkids in Arizona, finding the daughter upset when I arrived. She had just taken the 7-Eleven Kid and the twins to see the movie "We Bought a Zoo. " I remember as a parent how upset I was when I had to sit through dumb kid movies just because I was a father. But she was angry because Matt Damon , the father in the movie, was saying he had a 7-year-old daughter who still thinks the Easter Bunny exists.

Well, I guess the Lakers' holiday cards will now say, "We were dreaming of a Dwight Christmas. Now we just have to hope for Metta World Peace on Earth. " Talk about your lump of coal. Paul Feinsinger Agoura Hills :: David Stern? Yes, and also petty and vindictive. Jonathan Greenspan Westlake Village :: The only negative from the Clippers' acquisition of Chris Paul is that it probably validates, at least implicitly if not explicitly, the unprecedented and seemingly imperious, unconscionable and outrageous veto by David Stern of the Lakers' trade for Paul only days earlier.

A Los Angeles County Superior Court jury Wednesday unanimously rejected NBA great Elgin Baylor's wrongful-termination lawsuit against the Clippers. The jury of seven men and five women voted "no" to all of Baylor's claims that the Clippers, owner Donald T. Sterling and team President Andy Roeser oversaw a hostile workplace. Baylor, now 76, alleged he was harassed and subjected to age discrimination leading to his 2008 departure after 22 years as a Clippers executive. The jury deliberated for less than four hours.

Elgin Baylor's wrongful termination and age-discrimination civil lawsuit against the Clippers is expected to arrive in the hands of jurors Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court. In closing statements Monday, the team's attorney blasted Baylor's claim and urged the panel to deprive him of any financial payoff. Ridiculing Baylor's complaints against team executives who asked him about his birthday and how he was feeling in the years before the NBA great's split with the team as executive vice president, Clippers attorney Robert Platt told jurors, "You'd have to have police at every workplace saying you can't sing, 'Happy Birthday.' " Baylor, 76, parted with the Clippers after 22 seasons in 2008 when the team offered him a $10,000 monthly consultant's package.

Donald T. Sterling Sterling World Plaza Beverly Hills, CA 90210 Dear Donald, I wanted to say hi before it gets hectic with the Lakers in the playoffs and you making plans for the lockout as the hawk most likely to shut the league down for as many years as it takes. I know you've been busy too, with the Elgin Baylor trial, and the upcoming Mike Dunleavy arbitration. By the way, even though everyone else was surprised, I found your testimony that you didn't really know who Elgin was when you hired him totally credible.

A Los Angeles County Superior Court jury Wednesday unanimously rejected NBA great Elgin Baylor's wrongful-termination lawsuit against the Clippers. The jury of seven men and five women voted "no" to all of Baylor's claims that the Clippers, owner Donald T. Sterling and team President Andy Roeser oversaw a hostile workplace. Baylor, now 76, alleged he was harassed and subjected to age discrimination leading to his 2008 departure after 22 years as a Clippers executive. The jury deliberated for less than four hours.

Elgin Baylor testified Monday in his wrongful-termination lawsuit against the Clippers, saying he felt  "insulted and humiliated" after receiving a letter in August 2008 that the team wanted him to become a consultant and retire after 22 years as an executive in the organization. "I felt sick to my stomach. I felt crushed," Baylor said as a seven-man, five-woman jury heard testimony in Los Angeles Superior Court. Baylor, 76, is suing the team, Clippers owner Donald Sterling and President Andy Roeser for wrongful termination based on age discrimination.

Come on, Bill Plaschke, you know why Donald Sterling gave free admission to 1,000 underprivileged children for a game against Houston, in March; the Clippers had only two home games in February, against the Bulls and Celtics, teams that people will pay to see. Would Sterling give up 1,000 paying customers to do something for charity? David Saw Diamond Bar :: How dare Bill Plaschke take on Donald Sterling! It would seem that Donald is single-handedly trying to ensure the financial well-being of The Times with his daily advisements touting himself and his rental properties.