Interim CEO of the Los Angeles Clippers Dick Parsons has the sports world's least desirable job right now. With ousted owner Donald Sterling still fighting the sale of his team in court, reports say that the outcome might affect the team at a structural level. Parsons testified at the hearing last week that head coach and president Doc Rivers will likely leave if Sterling is allowed to maintain ownership of the Clippers. Parsons also speculates that many key players may quit as well.
Rivers has been vocal in his distaste for the racist comments Sterling made, which were made public in April. If the courts can't resolve the issue in a timely fashion, Rivers may have to leave the organization and perhaps take part of the roster with him. Obviously, this worries Parsons (via New York Daily News):
"If Doc would leave, that would be a disaster. The team believes in him and admires him. If he were to bail because of all the other circumstances surrounding him - the cloud - that's going to accelerate the death spiral.
"I feel his pain. It's a very difficult circumstance. Doc loves the team, he loves the players, he loves his job. He's just been promoted to president of basketball operations. He has every reason in the world, he wants to stay and produce a winner here. But the Sterling cloud is an issue for him."
Though Parsons may feel the same way as Rivers and the team, he has the unenviable task of keeping the wheels on the bus in the midst of a public relations disaster (via TMZ):
"After the hearing, Parsons says he hopes the judge will come to a resolution quickly -- and in the meantime, he's instructed Clippers players and coaches to focus on basketball while he focuses on reaching a solution.
"Translation -- He knows Sterling is poison ... and wants him out just as bad as everyone else."
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