Report: Robert Sarver Was Pressured by Adam Silver, NBA Governors to Sell Suns

Adam Silver defended his decision to suspend the governor of the Suns.

Silver is said to have put pressure on Sarver to leave the league.

According to Ramona Shelburne, Silver and other team governors worked behind the scenes to convince the owner to sell the Suns and Mercury.

Shelburne said there was a lot of private pressure on Robert. There were a lot of other league sponsors lined up to pull away from the Suns and not be associated with them.

Other owners and Adam Silver put pressure on them. Adam Silver is very good at helping people get to this place.

The owner of the Suns and Mercury blamed an "unforgiving climate" for his decision to sell.

"As a man of faith, I believe in forgiveness and the path to it," he stated. I expected that the commissioner's one-year suspension would allow me to focus, make amends and remove my personal controversy from the teams that I and so many fans love.

"In our current unforgiving climate, it has become painfully clear that that is no longer possible, that whatever good I have done, or could still do, is more important than what I have said in the past."

An investigation by the NBA found that he used racial slurs, bullied employees, engaged in inequitable treatment of female employees and ran a hostile work environment during his 17 years with the Suns.

Robert Sarver made the right decision to sell the Suns. This is the right next step for the organization.

His penchant for penny-pinching and not investing in the team made him unpopular with the Suns fans. The Seven Seconds or Less Suns never won a title because of his finance over basketball decisions.

Deandre Ayton was not offered a maximum contract extension by the team. The team allowed Ayton to hit restricted free agency and then matched the offer sheet from the Pacers. The Suns saved $43 million by going this route.

His spending was criticized in the past, but the reaction to the NBA's independent report was much different. NBA stars such as Chris Paul and Draymond Green criticized Silver's decision to suspend the player for one year.

The NBPA wants the league to permanently ban the man. While there was a precedent set by the league, Silver said the situations were dramatically different.

Fans, players and sponsors disagreed with Silver's categorization, and it seems the Commissioner worked behind the scenes to quell the public criticism.