Danny Ainge is good friends with Donald Stirling, and he remains so today.
No, not Donald Sterling. That’s “Stirling” with an “I.”
Stirling is the chief revenue officer for Miller Sports Properties, the company that controls the Utah Jazz. His name has become world famous, in a way, ever since the racist rant by Sterling, the Los Angeles Clippers owner, became public in late April.
Stirling seemed to be keeping a positive attitude about the situation, however, in an interview with the Salt Lake Tribune.
“It’s been strange over the past two weeks, the texts and emails I’ve gotten,” Stirling told Gordon Monson of the Tribune. “It remains surreal to hear your name on every SportsCenter, every broadcast, every social media outlet. Surreal.”
The really strange part is that Stirling sounds like a guy worth knowing on his own merits. His father, Scotty Stirling, was general manager of the Oakland Raiders and is credited with inventing the concept of fantasy football 50 years ago. The younger Stirling wrote the lyrics for an Everly Brothers song, “Who’s Going To Keep Me Warm,” and worked with the NBA, the LPGA and the Children’s Miracle Network in Utah.
Stirling even convinced Ainge, who attended BYU, to invest in a music project, according to the Tribune, but Stirling’s musical talent never matched his basketball acumen. Long an anonymous face, Stirling is now more famous than he could ever imagine — well, his name is, anyway. Sort of.
Photo via Twitter/@UtahJazz
