Bad press doesn’t begin to describe the negativity experienced by the NBA’s LA Clippers over the past week. Team owner Donald Sterling was caught last week being quite racist in an audio clip made public by TMZ. The scandal has led the NBA to ban Sterling and fine him $2.5 million. The NBA will also seek to push Sterling out of ownership of the Clippers.

Both the NBA and the LA Clippers have gone to great lengths to distance themselves from Sterling. That hasn’t stopped fans and critics alike for blaming the Clippers and calling for boycotts and other actions. This, in turn, has caused Clippers fans to come forward to defend their favorite basketball team.

Though plenty of famous people claim to be Clippers fans, few have stuck their neck out into this controversy – until now.

Actor Frankie Muniz, best known as Malcolm in the long-running Fox series Malcolm in the Middle, this week delivered an impassioned plea to basketball fans. Muniz stated that he is not a fan of Sterling, calling the man’s racist comments “disgusting.” However, Muniz revealed that he has supported the team’s players and coaches for two decades and is now calling on fans not to boycott the Clippers, if only for the sake of the players and the employees at the Staples Center.

Muniz’s long, well-worded statement was released through the actor’s Facebook page. The rare post makes it clear that Muniz is a die-hard Clippers fan and doesn’t want Sterling’s racism to color the team now that the Clippers are finally competitive:

In coming out against Sterling while defending the Clippers, Muniz no doubt speaks for thousands of fans throughout the US. It also demonstrates just how damaging Sterling’s comments have been to both the Clippers and the team’s fandom.

Image via Wikimedia Commons