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Clippers Outrage; New Strategy in Flight 370 Search

Aired April 28, 2014 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Pam.

Well, breaking news at the top of the hour out of Los Angeles, where Clippers head coach Doc Rivers just spoke with reporters about the controversy around his boss, team owner Donald Sterling -- Sterling reportedly recorded making racist comments about African-Americans.

Rivers, a former Clipper himself, said this just moments ago.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

DOC RIVERS, L.A. CLIPPERS HEAD COACH: These last 48 hours or more have been -- you know, they have been really hard for our players and for everyone.

And I would just like to reiterate how disappointed I am in our -- in the comments attributed to our owner. And I can't tell you how upset I am, our players are.

Today, I had a meeting with just people in organization. I'm talking about everyone from P.R. to everyone, because I just felt like, you know, they needed to hear a voice as well. And, you know, when you're around all of these people, you realize that they are just as upset and embarrassed.

And it doesn't reflect who they really are. And that was the thing that I got from all of them, you know, they didn't sign on for this, but they are part of this. They are upset at this, but they are going to hang in there. And so are we. I can tell you that as a group and as a team.

What I said yesterday after the game, I meant. I had to do a better job with our guys and try to get them back. And, you know, from our fan standpoint, being here over the last 10 hours since I have landed, they have been amazing. We need them. I can tell you that. We need unbelievable support right now from other people. And we're hoping we get that tomorrow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Now let's bring in CNN Sports' Rachel Nichols, who is covering the NBA playoffs in Charlotte, and also retired NBA legend Norm Nixon, who won two championship as a Los Angeles Laker. He's a former Clipper. We appreciate both of you joining us.

Norm, you're a former player, former agent. You listened to what Doc Rivers said, that he had to stand up, that it's not reflective of the organization. What are your thoughts on what the team is going through now, given everything that has been said?

NORM NIXON, FORMER NBA PLAYER: Well, first of all, as a player, it's a very, very difficult situation.

We spend our whole lives trying to win a championship. For this guy to make these type of statements, allegedly, and if it's him, it puts such a cloud over everything that they are doing. I will say this. If you look up what is racism, it's the belief that one race is superior to another. And you look at his statements, and they're racist statements. So it's a very difficult situation.

FEYERICK: This all started because of an audio clip released by TMZ Sports, Sterling supposedly berating his girlfriend about being seen with African-Americans. Take a listen.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People call you and tell you that I have black people on my Instagram and it bothers you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it bothers me a lot that you want to promo -- broadcast that you're associating with black people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You associate with black people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not you and you're not me. You're supposed to be a delicate white or a delicate Latina girl.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm a mixed girl.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And you're in love with me. And I'm black and Mexican, whether you like it or not.

He happens to be black, and I'm sorry.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think the fact that you ignore him -- I know him well and he should be admired.

And I'm just saying that it's too bad you can't admire him privately. And during your entire (EXPLETIVE DELETED) life, your whole life admire him, bring him here, feed him, (EXPLETIVE DELETED) him, I don't care. You could do anything. But don't put him on Instagram for the world to have to see so they have to call me. And don't bring him to my games, OK?

(END AUDIO CLIP) FEYERICK: Now the league is investigating the circumstances of this tape. It is disturbing on many, many levels. I listened to the whole thing. The one thing you do get is that this is a heartsick 80-year- old man in love with somebody 50 years his junior. She keeps bringing up the issue of skin color. And he says, that is not what this is about. This is not what it's about.

But what do you think, Rachel, knowing what you know of him? Is this just cutting too close that in fact these comments were meant exactly the way he said them, if he said them?

RACHEL NICHOLS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, nobody -- yes. Nobody this weekend discovered that Donald Sterling has some unfortunate views on race.

He has a track record and history of problems in this area, significant ones. The federal government twice has sued him because apartment buildings he owned discriminated racially against black and Hispanic tenants. And instead of fighting those lawsuits in court, he settled both of those lawsuits for what were then historic amounts.

He also has been sued by one of his former employees, Elgin Baylor, who was one of the greatest players ever in the history of the NBA who then went into management, worked for Donald Sterling and sued him for racial discrimination. There are all kinds of statements that were entered into the record in both of those lawsuits that are frankly disgusting.

They're a statement alleged to be made by Donald Sterling where he didn't rent to black and Hispanic tenants because -- quote -- "black people smelled and attracted vermin," things are just horrible to hear.

And the NBA frankly has been long criticized for allowing him to continue in his role. I think there is a bubbling up of this. Not only are these comments so hateful and so hard to hear. I think when you hear them an audio recording, as opposed to seeing them in print, that makes an impact.

And the fact that it is the latest in a series of incidents has certainly had people saying enough is enough. You heard Doc Rivers there, the emotion in his voice, the difficulty for these players and the position he is in. It's unbelievable, the pressure he is under. He said the night before the game that they played yesterday, he slept for 45 minutes. I'm not surprised.

FEYERICK: Yes, no question about that.

And, so, Norm, what do you think should happen? Should he be suspended the way Marge Schott was? Should he be banned from the game? Should he be forced to sell the team? What can the NBA legitimately do to reprimand him?

NIXON: You know, we're not privy to the deals that each team has with the NBA. The commissioner talked about broad powers. We want to see these powers. The Players Association has demanded that he not show up at any games throughout the remainder of this season. The way -- fans can hurt him by not showing up, canceling season seats. And I think he has to go.

I don't think he can no longer be an owner with those kinds of views and opinions. I don't think players want to play for him. You see sponsors pulling back. It's a black eye not only for the Clippers, but the entire NBA. The entire NBA is on trial. Everybody is waiting to see if -- taking the due process. We want to see due process. I think the players are waiting to see that.

I think we will get a big reaction from everybody after the NBA has the press conference there in the morning. We want to see this guy out of the league now.

FEYERICK: And just very quickly, Rachel and Norm, do you think this is an epidemic problem within the NBA or do you think this is simply one owner who has extreme views on the situation of the game and of his players? Rachel?

NICHOLS: Well, look, this is an extreme view and you have an organization with literally thousands of employees. You're going to get a variety of views and some of them are going to be extreme.

You hope that this is the worst one. It's interesting when we talk about this guy has to go. I think that is the groundswell of feeling around the country, sports and non-sports fans unlike. Unfortunately, it's not that simple. The NBA charter as you guys mentioned it is private document, we have had it leaked out that there are some circumstances you can remove an owner, but those are all financial.

So, basically, what's available to the commissioner are fines, suspensions and pressure on Donald Sterling to sell the team, but Donald Sterling is not the type of guy to just go away. He's extremely litigious and they have to worry about that as well, getting sued by one of their own owners.

FEYERICK: Absolutely.

Norm, this is a good thing, right? The fact that there has been such a groundswell, the fact that so many people are saying this is not acceptable, not now, not ever, certainly not in this day and age?

NIXON: Well, I agree with that. He is very litigious. And whether he would fight this or not, we don't know. We would love to see him do the right thing and just step aside because I feel bad for the players because again we play our entire careers to try to win a championship.

This team has an opportunity to win and to have this kind of cloud put on it -- but what can they do? We don't know. We would love to see this guy step away. Is this endemic? I think he is an extreme case. I think this kind of situation puts race back on the forefront. When you look at the gentleman Bundy in Texas, who was a folk hero for a week and all of a sudden he spoke his opinion about are we happier being slaves. There is still a problem there. Race is -- that situation has not disappeared from our society.

I think it's always great whenever it's a topic of conversation. It makes all of us take a look in the mirror and reevaluate exactly what's going on.

FEYERICK: All right, Rachel Nichols, Norm Nixon, thank you so much. We really appreciate all of your insights on this.

And one curious sidebar to this controversy. Until the recording alleged to be Donald Sterling went public, the Los Angeles NAACP had planned to give Sterling a lifetime achievement award at an event next month. The group has canceled that award and Sterling's name is off of the invitation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEON JENKINS, PRESIDENT, LOS ANGELES NAACP: The revelation that Mr. Sterling may have made comments in a phone conversation that was reminiscent of the ugly time in American history that contained elements of segregation of racial discrimination demands that the Los Angeles NAACP intention to honor Mr. Sterling for a lifetime body of work must be withdrawn and the donation that he has given to the Los Angeles NAACP will be returned.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: So the group says that the money is being returned, but when asked how much money Sterling has given the L.A. chapter of the NAACP, the group's president would only describe it as insignificant.

We have much more this hour on the controversy surrounding Donald Sterling. What power does the NBA have to punish him? We're going to be asking our legal experts.

Plus, more severe weather is expected today after a deadly round of storms tore through several states. Next, we're talking live to a man who hid in the closet with his family while that tornado passed overhead.

And some changes announced in the search for missing Flight 370. Officials have decided to suspend air searches. We will have more on the story, on the strategy, and what's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: After a killer tornado system hit three states, right now, another four states are under a -- quote -- "particularly dangerous situation for tornadoes." That's from the Storm Prediction Center. Much more on that in just a moment.

First, this is the weather system -- take a look at that -- that has produced the killer conditions in the Plains and the South on Sunday. It generated 30 reports of tornadoes with at least 16 people dead, including two children in Arkansas.

Take a look at how the city hall of Vilonia has been stripped to cement foundation. No walls, no doors.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My ears are popping. yes. we're in it right now. We're in the tornado. All right. We're pulling over.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: And you can see how dark and menacing that is. YouTube video shows an apparent funnel cloud over Mayflower, Arkansas. All but two victims were killed in Arkansas. Teams right now scouring debris, fearing the number of dead may rise.

Two college students described what they saw.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES BRYANT, SURVIVOR: We knew there would be damage, because we did see the tornado on the ground. We knew it would cross the freeway. We knew there would be some damage, but we weren't really prepared for the scene that we were about to roll up to. This is some really, really bad damage. There were cars flipped everywhere. There were people screaming. It was a really tough scene.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Arkansas wasn't the only place in the path of Sunday's deadly storms. One person was killed when a twister ripped through the Northeast Oklahoma town of Quapaw. The same line of storms hit Baxter Springs, Kansas, just a few miles to the north there. The town's 4,200 residents hunkered down as the three-block-wide tornado, three blocks, rumbled through town.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The minute it dropped and the array of debris is in the air, and it's wide, and, you know, I knew it was going to be really bad. But it just all happened so fast.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(WEATHER UPDATE)

FEYERICK: Well, next, a major change in strategy in the search for missing Flight 370. What led the change and what is next in the search? That coming up next.

Plus the NBA announced it's holding a news conference tomorrow in response to the Donald Sterling controversy. What power does the NBA have to kick him out? We are going to ask our legal experts.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: Big changes in the hunt for Flight 370.

A massive task just got a whole lot bigger. A new search zone some 150 times the size of the search that was just completed, that little yellow square you see? Well, this new phase of the search would be almost entirely underwater.

The air part of the investigation, the jets, the planes, that's about to be called off. Private contractors are being brought in to help. Some officials say new technology will be employed, but it could still take months, up to eight months exactly, to complete.

The sister of one of the passengers says an expansion is just not enough.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHEW KAR HUI, SISTER OF PASSENGER: They can say hopeless or how -- because I think they really waste a lot of time.

In this (INAUDIBLE) maybe they can find from the other place or so, or they can recalculate the Inmarsat data, the satellite data. This is what we want.

We also hope that government, they can release the data, so that we can get (INAUDIBLE) to recalculate whether the data -- whether the account, the calculation is correct.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: And joining me now, Rob McCallum, aviation analyst, ocean search specialist and expedition leader.

And, Rob, is she right that it's time to go back to square one, bring in new eyes to reevaluate everything, all the data that has so far been available?

ROB MCCALLUM, CNN ANALYST: She's on the right track.

And I think, you know, at the moment, because of the lack of physical evidence, the lack of debris, if you like, that now is the time to look at the Inmarsat data. I understand it's being looked at by many different agencies, and all have agreed that this is consistent and absolutely the best path to follow.

But the bit that needs reevaluating is the information that led us to believe in the beginning that these were the location of the pingers. If the pingers are not found in those locations, then we either have to reanalyze the data from the Bluefin to make sure nothing was missed or accept that, for whatever reason, those pingers were never there.

FEYERICK: So, Malaysia's first 370 report is due out this week. Should Malaysia continue its role as the lead investigative unit or should they get somebody else to possibly take charge? There are a lot of experts looking at this. But is it time to perhaps bring in somebody with a different perspective?

MCCALLUM: I don't believe that Malaysia is trying to hide anything.

You have seen in the news this week with President Obama's visit there is an open book policy essentially going forward. But the investigative process is separate to the process that -- the operational leg if you like of actually looking underwater for the wreckage.

And I think both -- as long as both of those processes are followed in an open way, then the relatives will find what they're looking for.

FEYERICK: And as for the search, Rob, what sort of fresh ideas would you be looking for if you were leading this search? For example, is there a possibility the plane is buried underneath that thick silt that's there? Weather, that's going to be worse. Should we be waiting simply for pieces to wash up on shore?

What new areas would you be considering now to try to find this plane?

MCCALLUM: I don't think the concerns about silt are valid at all. The wreckage will be sitting on top of any silt that may be down there, which is unlikely to very much at all.

I think you're seeing the next phase play out already. The search controllers have made it very clear that they're going wider. That's going to require tools that can cover a greater area of the ocean per day, perhaps 10 times as much as the Bluefin. And you're also hearing them acknowledge that cost is an issue and that it's now time to be responsible to taxpayer concerns, if you like, and make sure that anything that is done is efficient. And that's why they are looking at commercial contractors.

FEYERICK: OK.

Well, Rob McCallum, thank you very much. We're still keeping an eye on this.

And coming up, we're also keeping a close eye on the weather, more severe storms expected tonight; 16 people were killed last night when tornadoes touched down across several states. We will take you live to one of the hardest-hit places.

Plus, racist comments reportedly made by L.A. Clippers owner Donald Sterling have some companies already cutting ties with the team. But what can the NBA do to make sure this never happens again?

Coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)