NEW YORK -- NBA Commissioner Adam Silver delivered the swiftest, strongest penalty he could, then called on NBA owners to force Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling to sell the team for making racist comments that hurt the league. Stan Musial Jersey . Almost unanimously, owners supported the commissioner Tuesday, as he handed down one of the harshest penalties in the history of U.S. sports. "We stand together in condemning Mr. Sterlings views. They simply have no place in the NBA," Silver said at a news conference. Sterling, 80, is banned for life from any association with the league or the Clippers, and was fined $2.5 million -- the maximum allowable under the NBA constitution. If three-fourths of the other 29 owners agree to Silvers recommendation, Sterling will be forced to sell the team he has owned since 1981. A message left seeking comment at Sterlings business office hadnt been returned Tuesday afternoon. Team spokesman Seth Burton said in an email that the Clippers had no plans to issue a statement from Sterling on Tuesday. Players and others cheered Silvers quick action, with union officials saying that if the leagues punishment hadnt included a mandate for Sterling to sell the team, players were considering boycotting playoff games, including Tuesdays Golden State Warriors-Clippers matchup, the teams first home game since the scandal erupted. "We wanted to be a part of this decision, and we wanted Adam Silver to know where we stood. And we were very clear that anything other than Sterling selling his team was not going to be enough for us," said Roger Mason Jr., the first vice-president of the players union. Chris Paul, the Clippers All-Star point guard and the president of the players union, issued a brief statement before leading Los Angeles against the Warriors in Game 5 of their tied playoff series. "In response to todays ruling by the NBA and Commissioner Adam Silver, my teammates and I are in agreement with his decision," Paul said. "We appreciate the strong leadership from Commissioner Silver and he has our full support." Sterlings comments -- which were recorded by his girlfriend and released by TMZ on Saturday -- harmed the league, Silver said. Sponsors were threatening to abandon the NBA, and criticism was coming from fans on social media and even the White House. Sterling criticized V. Stiviano -- purportedly the female voice on the recording -- for posting pictures of herself with black athletes Magic Johnson and Matt Kemp. "It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that youre associating with black people. Do you have to?" Sterling asks the woman on the recording. "Sentiments of this kind are contrary to the principles of inclusion and respect that form the foundation of our diverse, multicultural and multiethnic league," Silver said. The NBAs longest-tenured owner keeps his team for now -- and Silver said he didnt know if Sterling would fight to do so permanently. But he cant attend games or practices, cant be involved in any personnel decisions or participate in board of governors meetings. Just three days after the scandal broke, and hours before the Clippers hosted their biggest game of the season, Silver apologized to some of the leagues black pioneers while meting out a punishment he believed would satisfy outraged players and fans. Sterlings Clippers have been one of the most incompetent franchises in pro sports, and nearly all of their previous seasons would have been finished by now. But after the most successful two-year stretch in Clippers history, the current team is a title contender led by Doc Rivers, a black coach whom Sterling brought in from Boston and paid $7 million a year. "(Silver) made the decision that really was the right one that had to be made," Rivers said before the Clippers game. "I dont think this is something that we rejoice in or anything like that. I told the players about the decision, and I think they were just happy there was a resolution and that its over, at least the start of it. I think were all in a better place because of this." Silver said the ban applied only to Sterling, and there had been no discussions about whether he could sell to a family member. Many owners supported Silver, and none of them publicly defended Sterling. "We applaud the firm punishment handed out today by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and appreciate the swiftness with which the NBA conducted its investigation," Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob said in a statement. The fine will be donated to organizations dedicated to anti-discrimination and tolerance efforts, Silver said. Sterling, with an estimated net worth of about $2 billion, did not comment, though Silver said he did not apologize for his remarks. Silver said Sterling confirmed that he was the person on the recording. Silver hasnt even been on the job three months and already had to face a crisis that threatened the league not only financially -- with several companies ending or suspending their sponsorships of the Clippers -- but more importantly, socially. The NBA survived the Indiana Pacers brawl with Detroit Pistons fans, and referee Tim Donaghy betting on games he officiated. But this brought a different level of outrage, particularly because the league could have done something sooner about Sterling, who has faced federal charges of civil rights violations and racial discrimination in his business dealings. "This has all happened in three days, and so I am hopeful there will be no long-term damage to the league and to the Clippers organization," Silver said. "But as I said earlier, Im outraged so I certainly understand other peoples outrage." After the announcement, the Clippers website had a simple message: "We are one." "We wholeheartedly support and embrace the decision by the NBA and Commissioner Adam Silver today. Now the healing process begins," the Clippers added in a statement. Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Toronto Raptors, issued a statement Tuesday afternoon. "As a proud member of the National Basketball Association, we stand strongly in our belief that the comments attributed to Mr. Sterling have no place in our society or sport. Our organization will always work to contribute to a culture of diversity and acceptance in this league and fully support the actions taken today. We thank commissioner Adam Silver, and all of the NBA players, for their leadership on this important issue." Rivers cancelled practice Monday and declined a meeting request from Sterling. He wouldnt address whether he would return next season if Sterling were still in control, a stance reaffirmed by the coach before Game 5 of the Clippers playoff series with Golden State. That might not be an issue if the owners vote to oust the owner. Sterling is estranged from his wife and had been dating Stiviano, 31. In court documents, Stiviano describes him as a man "with a big toothy grin brandishing his sexual prowess in the faces of the Paparazzi and caring less what anyone else thought, the least of which, his own wife." Silver said when he first heard the audio, he hoped it had been altered or was fake, but thought it was Sterling. And it doesnt matter if Sterling didnt realize he was being recorded, Silver said. "Whether or not these remarks were initially shared in private, theyre now public, and they represent his views." Chris Carpenter Jersey . They actually finished with a better record in ‘07 than they did in ‘06 but only marginally, going from 61 victories to 66. Jonathan Broxton Jersey . - Rookie Tesho Akindele scored three goals and Fabian Castillo added two in FC Dallas 5-0 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday night. http://www.baseballcardinalsauthority.com/Jedd-Gyorko-Jersey/ . Toronto dropped a 7-2 decision to the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday afternoon, with only a pair of late runs preventing a second straight shutout loss. Josh Willingham belted a two-run homer in the first inning and Kendrys Morales hit a bases-clearing double in the seventh as the Twins took the rubber game of the three-game series. TORONTO -- While most of those in the stands undoubtedly recoiled when they saw Andersons Silvas gruesome leg break Saturday night at UFC 168 in Las Vegas, Steven Sanders had a different thought cageside. "The only question I had in my mind was how low down on the leg was the fracture," the UFCs orthopedic surgeon recalled in a media conference call Monday. "Because the level of the fracture influences my thinking as to what type of orthopedic device Im going to need to fix it. "But the minute it occurred, Im sitting there going Thats fixable." Amazingly, less than 48 hours after surgery to insert a titanium rod and three screws in his left tibia, the 38-year-old Brazilian was up on crutches, accorded to the surgeon. "Its amazing because I dont know if I would be able to do it that quickly," said Sanders. And the surgeon said Silvas question prior to the operation was when could he train again. Still the former middleweight champion is spending most of his time in his hospital bed, at this stage, with his leg in a posterior splint. "Hes behaving as anyone would who had just broke both their bones violently and then had a 11.5-millimetre-diameter rod stuck down the intramedullary canal of your tibia. It hurts quite a bit," Sanders said. The fighter is expected to stay in hospital for a few more days and faces a long recovery before he could compete in the cage again. But Sanders says Silva will eventually be able to resume mixed martial arts. The surgeon expects the fighters fractures to heal in three to six months, with a time frame of six to nine months before trying to resume training. "The expectation is positive," Sanders said. Silva (33-6) will be able to do some rehab work, to put some weight on the leg "in the near future as we get though this acute pain phase." Saturdays fight was stopped at 1:16 of the second round, with current middleweight champion Chris Weidman declared the winner as doctors attended to a writhing Silva. Silva broke both the tibia and fibula in his lower left leg kicking Weidman in the main event at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Weidman checked the kick, meaning Silva went bone-one-bone. His leg snapped about a third of the way up the tibia from the ankle, causing his essentially untethered ankle and foot to swing around Weidmans leg in an stomach-churning moment. Silva, who up until his upset loss to Weidman in July at UFC 162 was considered the top pound-for-pound fighter on the planet, collapsed in agony. Sanders called it "horrific pain." Sanders said Dr. Anthony Ruggeroli immediately realigned the limb and applied traction, helping prevent the injuryy from getting worse. Ken Boyer Jersey. Silva was stretchered outside the cage under the direction of Dr. Jeff Davidson and taken to a waiting ambulance, which transported him to University Medical Centre Hospital, a Level 1 trauma centre. The operation lasted about an hour, with the rod inserted into his leg at the front of the knee, with a screw at the top and two at the bottom to stabilize the bone. While the fibula was also broken, Sanders elected not to operate on that bone because it would have required an incision at the site of the break, opening Silva up to the risk of infection -- among other reasons. Sanders says the fibula could heal on its own, adding he saw no evidence from X-rays there was an predisposition to a break. The surgeon called Silvas fracture "fairly severe," given the fact that the skin was essentially holding the leg together. That means the tissues that normally surround the bone, and help with the healing, have undergone trauma. The soft tissue recovery is "more of a variable" than the bone repair, said Sanders. The injury, while horrific to watch, could have been worse, with Sanders listing off the elements of a worse case scenario -- a break near the joint, the skin breaking, tearing a blood vessel challenging blood supply to the foot. "Unfortunately in my line of work, things can always sometimes be worse," he said. That includes "limb-threatening" if the fracture compromises vascular support to the foot. Silvas dramatic injury -- which Sanders pithily described as "an abnormal bend in the leg at a place where its not supposed to bend" -- was "extremely close" to being much worse On the plus side, the straight nature of the break will help in rehab, since a spiral fracture can "unwind." And the surgeon said the rehab wont be as intense as when fighters injure knee ligaments. The titanium rod can be removed at a later date or can stay in Silvas leg, Sanders added. "For whatever reason, humans like titanium." Sanders has worked with the UFC for more than a decade and has practised in Las Vegas since 1991, working with boxers prior to MMA fighters. Sivas injury recalled that of Corey Hill, who broke his leg while throwing a kick that was checked by Dale Hartt on a UFC card in December 2008. Hill returned to action in January 2010 and has gone 4-3 since, although not in the UFC. UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon (Bones) Jones said Silvas injury will not change his approach to fighting. "No Andersons last fight will not change my psychology towards kicking at all, that was just an extremely unfortunate situation," Jones tweeted. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '