Donald Sterling agrees to Clippers sale, drops lawsuit against NBA

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Thursday, June 5, 2014
Fans react to Donald Sterling dropping lawsuit
Donald Sterling has agreed to the sale of the Clippers and will dismiss his lawsuit against the NBA, his attorney said.

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Donald Sterling has agreed to the sale of the Los Angeles Clippers and will dismiss his lawsuit against the NBA, his attorney said Wednesday.

Attorney Maxwell M. Blecher also said the NBA has agreed to drop the charges against Sterling and to not sue him either.

Sterling had filed a $1 billion lawsuit against the NBA and Commissioner Adam Silver, alleging that the league violated Sterling's constitutional rights by relying on information from an "illegal" recording that publicized racist remarks he made to a girlfriend. The lawsuit also said the league committed a breach of contract by fining Sterling $2.5 million for those remarks and that it violated antitrust laws by forcing a sale.

The lawsuit came last week as the NBA canceled its hearing to consider Sterling's ownership of the Clippers, saying the team will be sold to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer for a record-breaking $2 billion.

The league had resolved its dispute over the franchise's ownership with co-owner Shelly Sterling and the Sterling Family Trust.