Donald Sterling attends service at black church

Donald Sterling attends a Sunday service at Praises of Zion Missionary Baptist Church. Photo courtesy of NBA RETWEET / Twitter

LOS ANGELES — Donald Sterling, whose racist remarks in a recording triggered the fight over ownership of Los Angeles Clippers, attended a predominantly black church service in South Los Angeles on Sunday.

Sterling told KNBC-TV he went to Praises of Zion Missionary Baptist Church to support the church and said the service was “beautiful.”

The station said the church’s pastor met Sterling recently and invited him to worship with the congregation. Sterling received a warm welcome, and Pastor J. Benjamin Hardwick told him the congregation was praying for him.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver fined Sterling $2.5 million, banned him from the league and started the process to end his ownership of the Clippers after an audio recording of Sterling disparaging blacks became public in April.