Corbin Bernsen and Harriet Samson Harris join cast of FX miniseries The Sterling Affairs

Harriet Samson Harris and Corbin Bernsen are among the seven new names announced to appear in the cast of The Sterling Affairs, the FX miniseries detailing the controversy that swirled around former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling that led to his lifetime ban from the NBA.

Yvonna Pearson, Jock McKissic, Darryl Wesley, Rich Sommer and Clifton Davis have also been cast in the forthcoming miniseries, Deadline reported Tuesday.  

The FX production stars Ed O’Neill as Sterling, Cleopatra Coleman as his one-time mistress V. Stiviano, Jacki Weaver as his wife Shelly Sterling and Laurence Fishburne as then-Clippers coach Doc Rivers.

The latest: Harriet Samson Harris and Corbin Bernsen are among the seven new names announced to appear in the cast of The Sterling Affairs, the FX miniseries detailing the controversy that swirled around former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling that led to his lifetime ban from the NBA

Among the castings, Bernsen plays the role of attorney Pierce O’Donnell, Pearson portrays Deja, McKissic plays former Clipper forward Glen Davis and Wesley plays former Clipper guard Jamal Crawford.

Also, Harris portrays Justine, Sommer plays the role of Clippers employee Seth Burton, and Davis portrays late NBA player and executive Elgin Baylor.

The Sterling Affairs is about the downfall of the Clippers owner amid the team’s drive to win a championship under Rivers. Sterling in 2014 was banned from the NBA and forced to sell the Clippers after a series of racist remarks he made aimed at Black people (in a discussion with then-girlfriend V. Stiviano) publicly surfaced.

In the racist rants, Sterling told her he did not like her being seen publicly and posting images with Black people on social media.

Coach: Laurence Fishburne plays then-Clippers coach Doc Rivers in the FX miniseries 

The FX production stars Ed O’Neill as Donald Sterling, who was banned for life by the NBA 

He told V. Stiviano in the tapes, which were released on TMZ, ‘It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you’re associating with Black people.

‘You can sleep with them, you can bring them in, you can do whatever you want – the little I ask you is not to promote it on that and not to bring them to my games,’ he said.

Amid the controversy in the wake of the release of the recordings, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver banned Sterling from the league for life, hit him with a $2.5 million fine and persuaded the other owners to force him to sell the franchise.

‘Sentiments of this kind are contrary to the principles of inclusion and respect that form the foundation of our diverse, multicultural and multiethnic league,’ Silver said at the time.

Flashback: Donald Sterling and V.Stiviano were pictured together at an LA Clippers game in 2013 

Sterling’s estranged wife Shelly Sterling had made a futile attempt to keep the controlling interests of the team in the family, which went on to sell to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer for $2 billion, months later.

LeBron James said at the time, ‘As players, we want what’s right and we don’t feel like no one in his family should be able to own the team.’ 

The script was written by Gina Welsh and was based on actual events that transpired.

O’Neill is primarily known for his role as Al Bundy in Married with Children, which debuted on the then-new Fox Network in April 1987.  It ran for ten years, until June 1997, and made O’Neill a star.

Ed was lucky to snare another 11-season run on a hit sitcom in 2009, playing Jay Pritchett on Modern Family, a role that earned him Emmy award nominations in 2011 and 2012.