Phoenix Suns governor Robert Sarver’s one-year suspension is an example of a punishment that doesn’t fit the crime. It isn’t nearly severe enough considering the racism, misogyny and sexism uncovered by the NBA’s investigation of his workplace conduct.
The lenient punishment has drawn criticism from all corners of the basketball world, including LeBron James and Chris Paul. The latest to show disappointment in commissioner Adam Silver’s ruling is PayPal, a sponsor of the Suns whose logo is proudly displayed on the front of their jerseys.
On Friday, PayPal said if Sarver remains involved with the Suns once their current deal expires at the end of the season, the company will end its partnership with the team.
“PayPal is a values-driven company and has a strong record of combatting racism, sexism and all forms of discrimination,” PayPal CEO and president Dan Schulman said in a statement. “We have reviewed the report of the NBA league’s independent investigation into Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver and have found his conduct unacceptable and in conflict with our values. PayPal’s sponsorship with the Suns is set to expire at the end of the current season. In light of the findings of the NBA’s investigation, we will not renew our sponsorship should Robert Sarver remain involved with the Suns organization, after serving his suspension.”
PayPal isn’t simply calling for a more severe punishment. The company is joining a chorus of people who want Sarver permanently removed. This is the first big domino to fall in his potential sale of the team, because once money starts talking, people have to listen.
While PayPal’s statement is important, however, it’s just a first step in a battle that will require even more pressure on Sarver, the NBA and other team owners. In a press conference on Wednesday, Silver called the potential removal of a team from its owner a “very involved process.” In other words, it’s a headache he or the league doesn’t want. And the NBA already has support from another sponsor, with Kia saying Friday it stands with the league.
"There are particular rights here to someone who owns an NBA team as opposed to somebody who is an employee."
Adam Silver answered @HowardBeck's question as to why there is a different standard held for Robert Sarver as an owner in the NBA
(via @NBATV) pic.twitter.com/ndmwDr7rkN
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) September 14, 2022
If the NBA is going to be pressured to remove Sarver, it’s going to take more sponsors to come out on the side of PayPal. Under Paragraph 13 of the NBA constitution, via Forbes, NBA owners can only strip another owner of their team, by three-fourths vote, if that owner “fails to fulfill” a “contractual obligation” in “such a way as to affect the [NBA] or its members adversely.”
Sarver’s behavior and the subsequent PR should qualify as adversely affecting the NBA on its own. But if not, a loss of sponsors and league revenue certainly would. More importantly, losing money could make Sarver decide to voluntarily sell the team rather than put a legal fight in court over a forced sale.
The last instance of a team being removed from an owner was the Los Angeles Clippers and Donald Sterling, which resulted in a lawsuit that the league had to settle. And even that sale required Sterling’s wife, Shelley, to first remove him from the family trust in order to take control of the Clippers.
The sponsors are important because Sarver is only going to dump the team when it’s not worth his time or energy to own it anymore. The only people who can make him feel that way are the people who make him money. The players could also potentially make his life more difficult, but it would be an even worse look for the NBA if players have to step away from their professions to do something it should have taken care of in the first place.
Selling the team, of course, is hardly a punishment itself. Sarver bought the Suns for $401 million in 2004. The team is now worth $1.8 billion, according to last year’s Forbes analysis. That doesn’t make it any less necessary and the added outside pressure will be hard to ignore.
It wasn’t until the Washington Commanders’ stadium sponsor FedEx threatened to pull its partnership before team owner Daniel Snyder agreed to change the team’s name. Similar action from Suns stadium sponsor Footprint would go a long way towards putting similar pressure on Sarver. PayPal alone isn’t enough, but it is a good start.
