TORONTO -- NBA players might be enemies on the court, but they are united off it. Thats why the Toronto Raptors say theyll make a gesture of support for the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night over the Donald Sterling controversy. "Were united. . . Youve got to respect that," said Raptors all-star DeMar DeRozan. "Thats the great thing about us. Society is not in that place anymore. You see guys from all different cultures, all different parts of the country, different parts of the world all coming together as one. Comments like that are uncalled for." The Raptors will join a chorus of support from around the league when they host Brooklyn in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference series at the Air Canada Centre. Sterling, the longtime Clippers owner, was banned for life by the NBA on Tuesday in response to racist comments he made. DeRozan wouldnt specify what the Raptors silent protest might entail, but it will likely be similar to Miamis. On Monday night, the Heat ran out of the tunnel in their warmups, huddled at centre court and tossed their white jerseys to the ground. They wore their red warmup shirts inside out, hiding the team logo. Sterlings comments outraged players around the league when the story broke last Saturday. The Raptors were in Brooklyn between Games 3 and 4, and the story was the topic of conversation during the teams bus ride to practice. "We live in a society where were much past that," DeRozan said. "From the comments that Sterling said, were much bigger than that. The game came a long way and society came a long way to take three steps back." Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry said the NBA "is a brotherhood." "Its not many of us, its a fraternity, we all support each other," Lowry said. "Thats what makes the NBA and professional sports so special. . . on the floor were enemies but off the floor were all brothers." NBA commissioner Adam Silver also fined Sterling US$2.5 million, in the first moves toward forcing a sale of the Clippers and permanently removing Sterling from the league. DeRozan said that nothing less than Sterlings removal is enough, adding players cant feel comfortable playing for an owner like him. The Raptors were among numerous teams that chimed in with their support of their league commissioner. "As a proud member of the National Basketball Association, we stand strongly in our belief that the comments attributed to Mr. Sterling have no place in our society or sport," the team said in a statement. "Our organization will always work to contribute to a culture of diversity and acceptance in this league and fully support the actions taken today." Raptors coach Dwane Casey said it was unfair to question players about the controversy while theyre in the midst of the playoffs. "Its unbelievable that someone would say that in 2014," Casey said of Sterling. He added: "For me to have to stand here and talk about this when we have a game (Wednesday) night speaks for itself. Im consumed with (Wednesday) night, but still, what happened last week is real and affects all of us." The Raptors and Nets are tied with two wins apiece in the best-of-seven series. The series heads back to Brooklyn for Game 6 on Friday. Game 7, if necessary, will be in Toronto on Sunday. Ray Ban Sunglasses Outlet Cheap .com) - The Carolina Hurricanes hope to remain perfect at home in January on Friday night as they welcome the Vancouver Canucks to PNC Arena. Ray Bans Clearance Sale . Inter moved five points behind fourth-place Fiorentina and eight points behind third-place Napoli, which visits relegation-threatened Sassuolo on Sunday. http://www.clearancerayban.com/ . None of them was better than playing with LeBron James again. Ray Ban Sunglasses Clearance . Armstrong was given the rank of "Chevalier" -- or Knight -- in the "Legion dHonneur" in 2005, the last year of his seven consecutive Tour de France victories. Clearance Ray Bans .C. -- Ryan Sproul scored the winner late in double overtime to lift the Grand Rapids Griffins to a 2-1 win over the Abbotsford Heat on Friday in Game 1 of their American Hockey League playoff series.INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- The Cleveland Cavaliers made a big change with another season falling apart, firing general manager Chris Grant on Thursday. Grant was fired a day after the Cavs dropped their sixth straight game, an embarrassing home loss to a Los Angeles Lakers team that started with eight players and finished with five. Vice president of basketball operations David Griffin will serve as acting general manager. Owner Dan Gilbert made it clear hes unhappy with what has transpired in a season that began with hopes the Cavs would make the playoffs after a three-year absence. "This has been a very difficult period for the franchise," Gilbert said in a statement. "We have severely underperformed against expectations. Just as this is completely unacceptable to our loyal and passionate fan base, season ticket holders and corporate partners, it is also just as unacceptable to our ownership group." Gilbert also met with reporters at the teams training facility following the announcement. He expressed confidence that the Cavs can show improvement under coach Mike Brown over the final 33 games. Grant was instrumental in the rehiring of Brown, who was fired during his first stint with the team in 2010. Gilbert was asked if Browns job was safe for the rest of this season. "Were going to see Mike Brown succeed this year because I think that hell be able to do good things and I think this team will be able to do good things," Gilbert said. "I think theyre going to look at each other and theyre going to look in the mirror and theyre going to rally." Gilbert also was asked why he decided to change his general manager but not his coach. "Coach Brown has only been here over half a season," he said. "Chris Grant has been here 8 1/2 years. Hes been the general manager almost four years. Theres a lot of talent on this team. I think everybody knows that." Gilbert promised last spring the Cavs would not return to the NBA lottery, but Cleveland is 16-33 and has dropped six in a row -- matching its longest losing streak of the season. The Cavs are 5 1/2 games out of the final playoff spot in the weak Eastern Conference and their only win in the lasst nine games came over Milwaukee, which has the leagues worst record.dddddddddddd "Accountability starts with me," Gilbert said. "I take responsibility for where were at." Grants tenure will be known for not being able to rebuild the Cavs fast enough despite having a slew of first-round draft picks, including two No. 1 overall selections. Grant addressed the teams poor play last week, saying everyone in the organization was accountable, including himself. Grant took Anthony Bennett with the first pick last June and then signed free-agent centre Andrew Bynum during the summer when no other team would offer the 7-footer a contract. Grant was able to unload Bynum in a trade with Chicago for Luol Deng, but the forwards arrival has done little to invigorate the Cavs. Cleveland has been under .500 since the fifth game of the season and the players have been slow to pick up Browns system on both ends of the floor. In a season thats already had too many low moments, the Cavs hit rock bottom Wednesday. Not only did they fall behind by 29 points to Los Angeles, the Lakers played the final few minutes with five healthy players, including one who was allowed to remain in the game after committing his sixth foul because coach Mike DAntoni was out of bodies. The Cavs were booed throughout the game and Brown, who has been unable to come up with any answers to stop his teams skid, benched All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving and three other starters in the fourth quarter as Cleveland got back in the game before losing 119-108. The acquisition of Deng last month brought hope the season could be salvaged, but that proved to be temporary. The Cavs went 3-2 on a West Coast trip, but followed that with a 1-4 record on its longest homestand of the season. Cleveland then lost three consecutive road games, including a 31-point rout by the Knicks on national television. Grant joined the organization in 2005 as vice-president of basketball operations/assistant general manager. He was hired as general manager on June 4, 2010. Griffin was hired later that year after spending 17 seasons with the Phoenix Suns, the last three as the clubs senior vice-president of basketball operations. 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