The NBA has penalized the Los Angeles Clippers by taking away five of their future first-round draft selections and imposing a $30 million fine on team owner Steve Ballmer, concluding its inquiry into claims that star player Kawhi Leonard was given illegal perks while under contract with the franchise, breaching the association’s salary cap regulations.
In addition, the league has fined Leonard a sum of $700,000.
This ruling was made public by the NBA on Wednesday. Under the penalty, the Clippers will forfeit their first-round draft choices for the consecutive years of 2029, 2030, 2031, 2032, and 2033.
Furthermore, the league has handed Ballmer a one-year suspension, banning him “from all league and team activities.”
According to the NBA, Ballmer’s suspension stems from “knowingly seeking to help Mr. Leonard obtain off-court income opportunities, for approving a business deal that he knew was a precondition for Aspiration to enter into an endorsement agreement with Mr. Leonard, and for his failure to create conditions under which his organization abided by the NBA’s circumvention rules.”
The release of this decision featured an official comment from Adam Silver, the NBA Commissioner:
“I am profoundly saddened by the blatant infractions of our regulations and the systemic and leadership breakdowns within the Clippers organization that resulted in this improper behavior,” stated Silver. “The harshness of these sanctions is a direct reflection of how grave these infractions are.”
According to league sources, both the NBA and the NBPA have agreed, “confirming these penalties are final and binding on all parties.”
NBA: Clippers breached salary cap regulations
In its public statement, the league clarified that the sanctions were imposed “for violating the salary cap circumvention rules.”
“The probe uncovered a consistent history of inappropriate behavior and several major policy breaches by the Clippers franchise, which has previously violated salary cap evasion guidelines,” the release detailed.
The league subsequently outlined the precise infractions committed by the Clippers as uncovered by the inquiry:
● Proactively setting up commercial income ventures for Mr. Leonard with four corporate partners of the franchise: Aspiration Partners, Boingo Wireless, Daktronics, and Lockton Insurance;
● Helping broker marketing contracts between Mr. Leonard and these specific firms;
● Encouraging these entities to sign the promotional deals by promising them commercial opportunities with the franchise;
● Covering private costs for Mr. Leonard and those representing him; and
● Neglecting to disclose unauthorized requests for external sponsorship deals made on behalf of Mr. Leonard by Dennis Robertson, who was his business manager at the time.
Clippers dispute findings, pledge to contest the ruling
On Wednesday afternoon, the Clippers released a statement strongly objecting to the NBA’s conclusions and disciplinary actions.
“We strongly dismiss the NBA’s conclusions, which stem from a highly prejudiced probe designed to support a preset story rather than focusing on actual truth and documentation,” the franchise’s statement declared. “The private discussions we had with league officials contradict their public declarations today, and they have fallen far short of the benchmarks for objectivity and precision promised by Commissioner Silver when this inquiry began.
“Throughout the last twelve months, we provided our complete and sincere cooperation, and we are prepared to defend ourselves with equal resolve to prove we did nothing wrong. We plan to aggressively contest these determinations and sanctions using all legal channels and look forward to a fair, unbiased arbitration hearing.”
Sanctions have been announced by the league following an official inquiry into claims that Kawhi Leonard was provided unapproved perks during his time with the Clippers.
(MediaNews Group/Torrance Daily Breeze via Getty Images via Getty Images)
NBA: Leonard also shares responsibility
The league’s probe likewise concluded that Leonard was personally involved in bypassing the team salary limit.
“Mr. Leonard, acting through his representative Mr. Robertson, breached the evasion policies by urging the Clippers to help him secure marketing deals, successfully finalizing those deals, and neglecting to pay back the team for personal outlays,” the league explained in its briefing.
The NBA additionally placed a ban on Robertson, who is Leonard’s uncle and business advisor, widely known as “Uncle Dennis.”
“For a duration of five years, Mr. Robertson is prohibited from representing any player or staff member in business dealings or interactions with NBA franchises and their associated organizations,” the league declared.
Shortly after the announcement, Leonard—who was recently sent to the Toronto Raptors in a blockbuster trade that was paused during the league’s inquiry—posted a response on social media.
“My personal values are rooted in honesty and respect for basketball,” Leonard’s statement read. “I take complete ownership of the errors in judgment made by individuals close to me and apologize for the disruptions this development has brought upon the fans and my loved ones.
“I signed my contract with the Clippers and agreed to the business arrangements in complete sincerity, intending to honor my commitments without any awareness of an effort by anyone to evade salary cap limits.
“Throughout my 15-year career, my main focus has been giving my all to my family, the sport, and my teammates. With my move back to Toronto, I am concentrating entirely on what is within my power, ending this episode, and embarking on a fresh start.”
Clippers management also faces discipline
Ballmer was not the sole member of the franchise to face direct penalties from the league. The NBA also issued suspensions to Gillian Zucker, the president of business operations, and Lawrence Frank, the president of basketball operations.
According to the league, Zucker has been suspended for one year without compensation “for being primarily and directly culpable for the impermissible endorsement arrangements and for providing false and misleading statements to investigators.”
Frank has received a six-month suspension without pay “for his involvement with the impermissible endorsement arrangements and for approving impermissible expenses incurred by Mr. Leonard and his family.”
The background of the NBA’s case against the Clippers
This ruling arrives several months after reporter Pablo Torre exposed the potential breach on his podcast, “Pablo Torre Finds Out.” On the show, Torre detailed a contract between Leonard and a currently insolvent firm named Aspiration, where Ballmer held a substantial stake. Under this deal, Leonard was paid $28 million for virtually no active duties. Ballmer faced allegations of utilizing this multi-million dollar arrangement to bypass the league’s salary cap, effectively funnelling extra money to Leonard to secure his signature with the team.
When the allegations first surfaced, the Clippers and Ballmer immediately dismissed the reports, putting out a denial of the claims presented by Torre.
An excerpt from the organization’s official release stated:
“The Clippers and Steve Ballmer did not bypass the salary restrictions. The idea that Steve bought into Aspiration simply to channel funds to Kawhi Leonard is completely ridiculous …
“It is standard practice for franchise sponsors to sign marketing agreements with players from that team. Neither Steve nor the Clippers franchise exercised any supervision over Kawhi’s private endorsement deal with Aspiration. To claim anything to the contrary is completely false.”
By the end of that day, the NBA declared that it was “commencing an investigation” regarding the matter.
NBA previously looked into Clippers over Kawhi Leonard’s 2019 signing
This represents the second instance within a span of a few years that the league set up an inquiry into potential unapproved advantages given to Leonard when he joined the franchise back in 2019.
Not long after Leonard agreed to join the roster, reports emerged that the NBA had audited Leonard’s representatives—most notably Robertson—who reportedly requested multiple unauthorized perks from teams during free agency talks.
Robertson supposedly petitioned franchises for “part ownership of the team, a private plane that would be available at all times, a house and — last but certainly not least — a guaranteed amount of off-court endorsement money that they could expect if Leonard played for their team,” according to a 2019 dispatch from The Athletic. These proposals were supposedly pitched to both the Los Angeles Lakers and the Toronto Raptors while Leonard was evaluating his options in free agency, as reported by The Athletic.
Sometime after Leonard committed to a three-season, $104 million contract with the Clippers, the league announced that its inquiry found no proof of the franchise offering banned incentives to Leonard during his free agency period.
Clippers and Ballmer maintained their innocence
Following the initiation of the fresh investigation in September, Ballmer and the Clippers persistently dismissed any assertions of misconduct. During a Sports Business Journal panel later that month, Ballmer asserted his “strong confidence” that the franchise had “followed the regulations.” He expressed openness to the inquiry, remarking that it would help bring the truth to light.
At the same time, Torre published more podcast episodes covering the scandal, presenting further proof indicating the Clippers moved money to Aspiration to ensure Leonard received his payments on schedule.
Speaking on the matter during a Board of Governors assembly in September, league commissioner Adam Silver suggested that substantial, undeniable proof of a rule breach by the Clippers would be necessary before penalizing the team or Ballmer. “If it were simply a matter of looking suspicious, I would think twice about taking action,” Silver remarked to reporters.
Torre’s final comprehensive report on the matter was published in late September, and he subsequently posted a seven-and-a-half-minute highlight reel in December summarizing all six episodes that analyzed the controversy.
After September, all involved parties largely kept a low profile regarding the ongoing issue.
Kawhi Leonard deal paused amid league investigation
This quiet period ended in June, when the Clippers sent Leonard back to the Raptors in a massive transaction. When news of the swap broke, uncertainty arose regarding whether Leonard’s trade could proceed while the NBA’s probe remained unresolved.
Several weeks later, both clubs released press releases. The trade was officially suspended pending the investigation. In their message, the Clippers reiterated that they had done nothing wrong. Meanwhile, the Raptors disclosed that the NBA had warned them they would “take on the risk of any eventual” sanctions aimed at Leonard. Consequently, the Toronto franchise decided to delay finalizing the trade until the league wrapped up its inquiry.
“We were advised by the league office that, due to the active probe into the Clippers, our team would take on the risk of whatever consequences the inquiry might have on Kawhi. For this reason, we will postpone any action until the league has concluded its investigation.”
On that very day, Shams Charania of ESPN reported that the trade was still expected to go through eventually, indicating that any individual penalties for Leonard would not derail the agreement. The precise status of the transaction remained uncertain as of Wednesday.
Though there was no firm timeline for when the NBA would wrap up the investigation, reports indicated the league aimed to finish prior to the Board of Governors assembly in July.
Even with Leonard and James Harden on the roster, the Clippers struggled terribly at the outset, managing only a 5-16 record to start the campaign. Leonard sat out 10 of those early matches with ankle and foot ailments, and the Clippers registered a meager 2-8 record during his absence.
However, the squad rallied upon his return to the court. Leonard posted a career-best average of 27.9 points per matchup and earned MVP consideration for the first time in four years. Despite his stellar play, the Clippers were unable to completely overcome their rough start. They managed to finish with a winning record of 42-40, but were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in the play-in tournament.
With Leonard entering the concluding season of his contract, the league’s ongoing investigation, and the Clippers apparently unable to progress, the organization concluded that trading the elite forward was their best path forward.
