Miami Heat's LeBron James, left, shoots over Charlotte Bobcats' Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, center, and Al Jefferson, right, during the first half in Game 3 of an opening-round NBA basketball playoff series in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday, April 26, 2014. 
 
 The face of the NBA says there is no place in the league for Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling. 
 
 Taking a powerful stand against alleged racially insensitive comments by Sterling, Heat forward LeBron James called for immediate action by the NBA “before this really gets out of hand.” On Friday night, TMZ.com published an audiotape reported to be of Sterling telling a person, among other things, “it bothers me a lot that you want to promo, broadcast that you’re associating with black people. Do you have to?” 
 
 “If the reports are true, it’s unacceptable,” James said. “It’s unacceptable in our league. It doesn’t matter if you’re white, black, Hispanic, whatever, all across the races.” 
 
 James didn’t mince words, repeatedly saying “there is no room for Donald Sterling in our league.” 
 
 He also said he was confident that newly appointed NBA commissioner Adam Silver would take the appropriate steps in its investigation of the controversy and “take a stand.” 
 
 “I believe in Adam [Silver], I believe in the NBA, and they have to do something and do something very fast and quickly before this really gets out of hand,” James said. “Like I said, there is no room for Donald Sterling in our league, man. There it is.” 
 
 Close friends with Clippers point guard Chris Paul, James said: “I can only imagine what’s going through his head.” As for James himself, he said if he played for the Clippers he would consider boycotting games. 
 
 “I kind of waivered back and forth whether I would actually sit out,” James said. “If our owner would come out and say the things that he said, I would really have to sit down with my teammates, talk to my family, because at the end of the day, our family and our teammates are way more important than that. 
 
 “Basketball is huge, obviously, the playoffs have been unbelievable, and I hate the fact that something like this has to come out when the playoffs have been unbelievable, and the game of basketball continues to grow.” 
 
 The audiotape also mentioned Lakers great Magic Johnson: “Don’t put him on an Instagram for the world to have to see so they have to call me. … And don’t bring him to my games, OK?” 
 
 Johnson responded to the comments on Twitter. 
 
 “I feel sorry for my friends coach Doc Rivers and Chris Paul that they have to work for a man that feels that way about African Americans,” Johnson tweeted. 
 
 He also added that the comments were “a black eye for the NBA,” and that he wouldn’t attend another Clippers game as long as Sterling is the team’s owner. 
 
 Clippers president Andy Roeser released a statement addressing TMZ’s report: 
 
 “We have heard the tape on TMZ. We do not know if it is legitimate or it has been altered. We do know that the woman on the tape — who we believe released it to TMZ — is the defendant in a lawsuit brought by the Sterling family alleging that she embezzled more than $1.8 million, who told Mr. Sterling that she would ‘get even.’ Mr. Sterling is emphatic that what is reflected on that recording is not consistent with, nor does it reflect his views, beliefs or feelings. It is the antithesis of who he is, what he believes and how he has lived his life. He feels terrible that such sentiments are being attributed to him and apologizes to anyone who might have been hurt by them. He is also upset and apologizes for sentiments attributed to him about Earvin Johnson. He has long considered Magic a friend, and has only the utmost respect and admiration for him — both in terms of who he is and what he has achieved. We are investigating this matter.” 
 
 In a statement, Heat owner Micky Arison called the comments “appalling, offensive and very sad.” ||||| Former Lakers great Magic Johnson, left, said he will never attend a Clippers game at Staples Center again after owner Donald Sterling allegedly made racist comments that involved Johnson. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times; Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press / ) 
 
 An Instagram photo of Magic Johnson posing with Donald Sterling's female friend V. Stiviano has become a historical document. 
 
 After TMZ released unverified audio of Sterling purportedly making racist comments about the photo, it will be the last time anyone will see Johnson at a Clippers game at Staples Center. 
 
 "I will never again set foot in Staples Center when the Clippers are playing," Johnson said Saturday afternoon in a phone interview. "I know where I'm not wanted." 
 
 Johnson was furious upon hearing the comments, which were aimed at all African Americans, and is calling upon the NBA to take serious action that could include stripping Sterling of his ownership duties. 
 
 "Something has to be done, and if that means him losing the team, then that has to happen," Johnson said. "The league has to come down hard and make a statement.'' 
 
 Sterling dominated the sports world Saturday after a transcript of a tape allegedly had him berating Stiviano for being seen with Johnson. 
 
 "It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you're associating with black people," the man says in the audio. "Do you have to?" 
 
 The man added, "You can sleep with [black people)], you can bring them in, you can do whatever you want. The little I ask you is to not promote on that [Instagram] … and not to bring them to my games." 
 
 Johnson said he was stunned by the ignorance of the statements. 
 
 "This is so crazy, he doesn't want African Americans to come to his game, he doesn't want them to be part of anything over there, yet he wants his team of mostly African Americans to win him a championship?" Johnson said. "You don't want us in your building, but you want us to win a title for you?'' 
 
 Johnson said the comments are particularly hurtful in a diverse city like Los Angeles, as the words betrayed the very people upon whose loyalty Sterling has long depended. 
 
 "There are African Americans living in his building, African Americans buying his season tickets, African Americans putting money in his pockets, yet he doesn't want them near him?" Johnson said. "He tells them don't bother to come, he doesn't want them in his arena? In the most diverse city in the United States? How can somebody like that be running a sports team?" 
 
 Johnson feels that Sterling's statements would validate years of racism charges against the owner, a history that Johnson feels should be enough to strip Sterling of his powers. 
 
 "I guess he proved Elgin Baylor right when Elgin sued him for this," Johnson said. "Nobody wanted to pay attention to it back then, but now, he showed his true colors, and how can you own a sports team and be like that? Aren't sports the one thing that brings us together?" 
 
 (Baylor, the former Clippers general manger, filed a wrongful-termination suit against Sterling several years ago and a jury rejected the claim.) 
 
 Johnson said his biggest concern was for the Clippers players and coaches, and he phoned Coach Doc Rivers on Saturday afternoon to offer his support and encourage them to keep playing. 
 
 "I feel really bad for them, they are trying to win a championship while, at the same time, most of them are African American men who have to explain this to their children, it's such an awkward position," Johnson said. 
 
 Though a one-game boycott in the playoffs might have seemed like a strong message, Johnson said it was the wrong message. 
 
 "I would never want them to do that. Please, don't even attempt to do that," he said. "They need to stay focused on their dreams, they worked eight months to put themselves in this position, they have a chance to win a championship, they need to go for it. Guys like me will handle the other stuff." 
 
 Johnson said Sterling's basketball investment will take a big hit later, when the Clippers try to attract free agents. 
 
 "Right now, in that area, they're done, that's it, you have an owner saying you don't like African Americans, you're trying to recruit players, that's not going to happen," Johnson said. 
 
 If nothing else, Donald Sterling has already lost one notable spectator. 
 
 bill.plaschke@latimes.com 
 
 Twitter: @billplaschke ||||| The Rev. Jesse Jackson on Saturday called for a quick response from both the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association over an explosive recording of a man alleged to be Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling making racist remarks. 
 
 “There must be some form of punishment,” Jackson told TMZ on Saturday of the comments that set the Internet alight. “There must be a response and if they don’t respond, there must be picket signs.” 
 
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 The NBA is investigating — and in the process of validating — the recording of a conversation reportedly between Sterling and his girlfriend in which the team owner allegedly warned her not to bring black players to team games. 
 
 NBA Commissioner Adam Silver called the audio recording, first posted by TMZ on Friday, “truly offensive” while Sterling has apologized for “sentiments attributed to him” about Hall of Famer Magic Johnson. 
 
 “It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you’re associating with black people. Do you have to?” the voice in the recording says. 
 
 The man tells his girlfriend, who TMZ identified as V. Stiviano, to not post photos onto Instagram with black people, including Johnson. 
 
 “Don’t put [Johnson] on an Instagram for the world to have to see so they have to call me. And don’t bring him to my games,” he says. 
 
 Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, who also sits as the chairman of the NBPA, in a statement Saturday said he will be leading the group’s response, which he said will play a “very active role in determining how this issue is addressed.” 
 
 “The reported comments made by Clippers owner Donald Sterling are reprehensible and unacceptable,” said Johnson, who also was sworn in as president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors earlier this month. 
 
 “There needs to be an immediate investigation and if the reports are true, there needs to be strong and swift action taken,” Johnson said. 
 
 Johnson added that he will be reaching out to the NBA formally “to determine our next steps.” 
 
 Magic Johnson tweeted that he would not attend another Clippers games while Sterling was owner. League MVP LeBron James called on the league to throw Sterling out. 
 
 Chris Paul, who both plays for the Clippers and is the president of the NBPA, also released a statement announcing Kevin Johnson’s expanded role in handling what Paul called a “serious issue” that the group will “address aggressively.” 
 
 “As players, we owe it to our teams and our fans to keep our focus on our game, the playoffs, and a drive to the Finals,” Paul said in a statement. 
 
 The Clippers released a statement questioning the recording’s authenticity as well as its source. 
 
 “We have heard the tape on TMZ. We do not know if it is legitimate or it has been altered,” a statement by team president, Andy Roeser said. “We do know that the woman on the tape — who we believe released it to TMZ — is the defendant in a lawsuit brought by the Sterling family alleging that she embezzled more than $1.8 million, who told Mr. Sterling that she would ‘get even.’” 
 
 The statement said that the recording is not consistent nor reflects Sterling’s views. 
 
 “It is the antithesis of who he is, what he believes and how he has lived his life,” Roeser said. “He feels terrible that such sentiments are being attributed to him and apologizes to anyone who might have been hurt by them.” 
 
 The statement also said that Sterling is upset and apologizes for the “sentiments attributed to him” about Johnson. 
 
 “He has long considered Magic a friend and has only the utmost respect and admiration for him—both in terms of who he is and what he has achieved,” the statement said.
– The racist and alleged comments of LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling have attracted the wrath of some really big names, including the leader of the free world. "The owner is reported to have said some incredibly offensive racist statements that were published," Obama said today in Malaysia, as per Politico. "When ignorant folks want to advertise their ignorance you don’t really have to do anything, you just let them talk. And that’s what happened here." But he's far from the only one: Magic Johnson, the target of Sterling's alleged rant, has responded thusly, according to the LA Times: "I will never again set foot in Staples Center when the Clippers are playing. I know where I'm not wanted." Further, "Something has to be done, and if that means him losing the team, then that has to happen. The league has to come down hard and make a statement." Meanwhile, Deadspin has released an extended version of the tape, which now runs 15 minutes. Elsewhere in reaction: Sacramento Mayor and NBPA chairman Kevin Johnson: "The reported comments made by Clippers owner Donald Sterling are reprehensible and unacceptable. There needs to be an immediate investigation and if the reports are true, there needs to be strong and swift action taken." Lebron James: "If the reports are true, it’s unacceptable. It’s unacceptable in our league. It doesn’t matter if you’re white, black, Hispanic, whatever, all across the races. There is no room for Donald Sterling in our league." And an interesting statement from Clippers president Andy Roeser: "We have heard the tape on TMZ. We do not know if it is legitimate or it has been altered. We do know that the woman on the tape—who we believe released it to TMZ—is the defendant in a lawsuit brought by the Sterling family alleging that she embezzled more than $1.8 million, who told Mr. Sterling that she would 'get even.'" Furthermore: "It is the antithesis of who (Sterling) is, what he believes and how he has lived his life. He feels terrible that such sentiments are being attributed to him and apologizes to anyone who might have been hurt by them."