Donald Sterling Blames Girlfriend For Baiting Him Into Racist Comments

It's his first TV interview since the NBA banned him for life and moved to terminate his ownership in the wake of a host of racist comments caught on tape.

CNN released a five-minute preview of the interview this morning.

In it, Sterling says that he's there to apologize, and calls the leaked tape "a terrible mistake."

He also places blame on his girlfriend, V. Stiviano, who he says "baited" him into making racist statements.

Here's the key change:

Sterling: "I don't know why the girl had me say those things."

CNN: "You're saying you were set up."

Sterling: "Well yes, I was baited. I mean, that's not the way I talk. I don't talk about people for one thing ever. I talk about ideas and other things. I don't talk about people."

Sterling also rips Magic Johnson in the CNN interview. In an indirect way, Johnson was the catalyst for Sterling's racist tirade. It was a photo of Johnson on Stiviano's Instagram account that caused Sterling to tell her not to take pictures with black people or take black people to Clippers games.

In the CNN interview, Sterling calls Johnson a bad example for kids:

"If I said anything wrong, I'm sorry. He's a good person. I mean, what am I going to say? Has he done everything he can do to help minorities? I don't think so. But I'll say it, he's great. But I don't think he's a good example for the children of Los Angeles."

Sterling has a history of racist comments and deplorable behavior independent of the recent tape.

Here's the preview of the interview