LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles Clippers interim CEO Richard Parsons says coach Doc Rivers has told him he’ll quit if Donald Sterling remains owner of the team. Parsons made the statement while testifying in a trial to determine whether Sterling’s wife Shelly Sterling can sell the team for $2 billion to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

The NBA has sought to force out Sterling since soon after racist statements emerged on recordings in April.

Rivers, who is black, has said he had heard from other Clippers business employees that they didn’t think they would be able to work for Sterling under the circumstances.

Sterling has denied he is a racist from the witness stand and vows he’ll never sell the team, claiming he is the victim of illegally recorded conversations that invaded his privacy.