Hall Of Shame: 11 Professional Athletes Who Were Permanently Banned [PHOTOS] - Page 7

As the entire sports world rejoices over the permanent expulsion of racist Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling from the NBA, it opens up another conversation of the occasional black eyes that can plague the major leagues.

Professional athletes are expected to maintain the highest standard of moral behavior during and away from play. Obviously that doesn’t always happen; they’re human just like the rest of us and their competitive drive (and enormous bank accounts) result in a more passionate way of living.

Sterling wasn’t the first sports owner to be banned for racial comments as Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott was banned in the mid-90s for supporting a few of German dictator Adolph Hitler’s policies. Schott was later reinstated but NBA Commissioner Adam Silver made it pretty clear that the chances of Sterling getting welcomed back in the fold were next to none.

Yet, on the court, field, diamond and even rink, there have been a few players who pushed their luck until their respective organizations had enough.

In light of the Sterling removal from the NBA, we shamefully present eleven professional athletes who were permanently banned and never got back in the door.

Ben Johnson

Reason: Doping

Canada seemed to take North American bragging rights after Ben Johnson bested the likes of USA’s Carl Lewis and Calvin Smith in the 1988 Summer Olympics. As fate would have it, he was on illegal steroids and eventually stripped of every medal and bit of dignity he had.

Photo: WENN/Josiah True

Pete Rose

Reason: Gambling

Rose is MLB’s all-time hits leader and he also betted against his own Cincinnati Reds club while playing and managing with them. It seems inevitable that he’ll go to his grave before he’s eligible for the Hall of Fame.

Jack Molinas

Reason: Point-shaving

Molinas was subsequently banned from the NBA and actually did a five-year prison bid for his role in the blockbuster CCNY point shaving scandal. Sadly, he never cleaned up his act and was allegedly murdered by the mob in 1975 while living in Hollywood.

Roy Tarpley

Reason: Booze

Once a promising presence in the NBA’s glory years of the big man (1988’s 6th Man of the Year for example), Tarpley got the boot from the league after he couldn’t stop drinking even after the courts specifically told him not to.

Photo: WENN/Nikki Nelson

Tonya Harding

Reason: Jealously

Harding knew she couldn’t beat her figure skating rival Nancy Kerrigan so she hired someone to actually beat her. In 1994, she hired a man to break her competitor’s league for a championship she eventually won. The USFSA permanently banned her later that year.

Chris Washburn

Reason: Drugs

The third time was the charm after the Atlanta Hawks struggle center had string of positive drug tests in 1989, resulting in a lifetime ban.

Photo: ABC 7

Dexter Manley

Reason: Drugs

Even two-time Super Bowl winners don’t get a pass for coping with dope. After failing his third consecutive drug test in 1991, the NFL told Manley adios forever. He’s also no longer wanted on the radio after he gay-bashed Troy Aikman in October 2013.

Billy Coutu

Reason: Fighting (a referee)

It takes a special class of a player to get banned from the rough and rugged NHL. Coutu holds the distinction of being the only player in the league’s history to receive such a dishonor after he blessed a ref with a fade in 1927.

1919 Chicago Black Sox

Reason: Gambling

Lead by “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, a total of eight players were permanently banned from MLB after they intentionally threw the 1919 World Series for pay. This was obviously before the days of lottery ticket worthy contracts but still despicable nonetheless.

Lance Armstrong

Reason: Doping

As a 7X Tour de France winner, Armstrong had all his titles and wins stripped by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) after he was found guilty of doping in 2012.