The NBA handed down sweeping penalties to the Clippers, owner Steve Ballmer, team executives and star Kawhi Leonard following an investigation into allegations the group circumvented the league’s collective bargaining agreement.
The Clippers said in a statement that they “vehemently reject the NBA’s findings” and vowed to challenge them. Leonard issued a statement saying he had no direct knowledge of the alleged violations.
The findings announced Wednesday, the result of a nearly yearlong investigation conducted by Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, a high-powered New York law firm, determined the Clippers broke NBA rules by initiating off-court income opportunities between Leonard, their seven-time All-NBA forward, and four companies doing business with the team: Aspiration Partners, Boingo Wireless, Daktronics and Lockton Insurance.
The firm’s report stated that the Clippers facilitated endorsement agreements between the companies and Leonard, induced the companies to enter into the agreements by offering them business from the team, paid personal expenses on behalf of Leonard and his representatives and failed to report improper solicitations for off-court income made on Leonard’s behalf by Dennis Robertson, his uncle and business manager at the time.
The investigation found Leonard received $66 million in endorsement pay from four companies facilitated by Ballmer and Clippers executives at the behest of Robertson. Ballmer invested $60 million in Aspiration, and three other companies received $22 million from the Clippers in consulting fees.
As a result, the NBA issued the following sanctions:
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The Clippers are forfeiting five first-round draft picks, in the 2029, 2030, 2031, 2032 and 2033 NBA drafts, and are fined $30 million.
- Ballmer is suspended from all league and team activities for one year for “knowingly seeking to help 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.”
- Clippers president of business operations Gillian Zucker is suspended without pay for one year for “being primarily and directly culpable for the impermissible endorsement arrangements and for providing false and misleading statements to investigators.”
- Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank is suspended without pay for six months for “his involvement with the impermissible endorsement arrangements and for approving impermissible expenses incurred by Mr. Leonard and his family.”
- The Clippers organization and personnel are subject to a compliance and monitoring program overseen by the league office for five years.
- Leonard is required to pay the league $700,000.
- Robertson is banned from conducting business or otherwise engaging with NBA teams and their affiliates on behalf of or with respect to any player, employee or other league or team personnel for five years.
Read more:NBA commissioner Adam Silver says Clippers probe should wrap up before the regular season begins
The Clippers said they cooperated fully with the investigation and will fight “to demonstrate our innocence.”
“The NBA’s findings … are the result of a heavily biased investigation seeking to justify a predetermined narrative rather than facts and evidence,” the team said in a statement. “What the league told us privately differs from what it announced today publicly, and they have not held themselves close to the standard Commissioner [Adam] Silver set at the start of this investigation to ensure its fairness and accuracy.”
”… We intend to vigorously challenge these findings and penalties through every avenue available to us and look forward to an ethical and impartial arbitration process.”
The Clippers most likely will have to take their claims to court. A league source not authorized to discuss the sanctions publicly said there is not an arbitration or appeal process. Arbitration is reserved for players, and the National Basketball Players Assn. declined to pursue use of it in this case.
The Clippers released a letter sent to Silver arguing Ballmer spent nearly $50 million funding the investigation and cooperated in every way possible.
“Mr. Ballmer’s reputation has been irreparably damaged as he now finds himself embroiled not only in this heavily biased investigation, but in civil litigation, the Aspiration bankruptcy proceeding, and more,” the letter stated. “It seems increasingly likely that Mr. Ballmer will spend years defending himself and the team against a podcaster’s baseless claims.”
Leonard issued a statement denying knowledge of the salary cap violations without contesting the firm’s findings.
“I accept full responsibility for lapses in judgment by people within my inner circle and regret the distraction this situation has caused the fans and my family,” Leonard’s statement read. “I entered into my contract with the Clippers as well as the agreements in question in good faith, fully committed to fulfilling my obligations and with no knowledge of any intent on anyone’s part to circumvent the salary cap.
“For 15 years, my priority has been giving everything to my family, the game, and those I share the court with. As I return to Toronto, I am focused on what I can control, closing this chapter, and moving forward with a clean slate.”
Seven years after he came home to the Southland as the centerpiece of an ambitious new Clippers era, Leonard was traded to the Toronto Raptors on June 30 for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick and a slew of draft picks, but the deal was put on hold pending the outcome of the investigation. Leonard led the Raptors to the NBA championship in 2019. It remains unclear whether the trade will be finalized.
The probe was triggered when the “Pablo Torre Finds Out” podcast aired an episode Sept. 3, 2025, detailing the contract Leonard received from Aspiration, a self-described “socially-conscious and sustainable banking services and investment products” firm that went bankrupt months earlier.
The deal with Leonard came to light in Aspiration’s bankruptcy documents. Joseph Sanberg, co-founder of the company, pleaded guilty in October to federal charges of conspiring to bilk investors out of $248 million and on June 1 was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison.
One of the primary investors in Aspiration was Ballmer, the former longtime chief executive of Microsoft whose estimated net worth is $139 billion. He has owned the Clippers since 2014.
Read more:Kawhi Leonard trade to Toronto put on hold until the NBA probe into the Clippers concludes
Ballmer invested $50 million in Aspiration in September 2021. A month later, the Clippers announced a $300-million sponsorship deal with the company. Ballmer nearly granted Aspiration naming rights to the team’s new $2-billion arena but instead chose financial services firm Intuit.
Two years later when Aspiration was experiencing severe financial difficulties, Ballmer invested an additional $10 million, and Clippers co-owner Dennis Wong — Ballmer’s former college roommate — invested $1.99 million, nine days before Leonard received a $1.75-million payment from the company. Leonard was paid $21 million of the $28 million agreed upon in his contract with Aspiration.
Leonard would not talk about the allegations during the 2025-26 NBA season because the investigation was ongoing and brushed it off during media day last September.
“None of us did … wrongdoing and, yeah, that’s it,” he said. “We invite the investigation.”
Asked if he performed any endorsement work for Aspiration, Leonard said, “I understand the full contract and services that I had to do. Like I said, I don’t deal with conspiracies or the click-bait analysts or journalism that’s going on.”
Players are allowed to have endorsement and business deals, but at issue was whether the Clippers participated in arranging the side deal beyond simply introducing Aspiration executives to Leonard. Doing so would be a violation of Article 13 of the NBA collective bargaining agreement.
Read more:Clippers considered naming dome after bankrupt firm at center of Kawhi Leonard allegations
ESPN reported Aug. 17 that NBA investigators met with Ballmer and other Clippers officials in an attempt to agree to findings before the case went to arbitration. Although ESPN wrote that three sources told reporters the NBA found no evidence showing Ballmer funneled money through team sponsors to pay Leonard to circumvent the salary cap, the NBA immediately pushed back, releasing a statement that read “ESPN’s article regarding the L.A. Clippers investigation — for which the NBA declined to cooperate — contains numerous and significant inaccuracies. The results in this matter will be made clear once the investigation is concluded.”
In his only public comments since the accusations first surfaced, Ballmer told ESPN last September that he was “conned” by Sanberg and Aspiration. He also said he knew nothing of the endorsement deal between the company and Leonard.
“We were done with Kawhi, we were done with Aspiration,” Ballmer said. “The deals were all locked and loaded. Then, they did request to be introduced to Kawhi, and under the rules, we can introduce our sponsors to our athletes. We just can’t be involved.”
Ballmer cannot wipe his hands clean of Aspiration yet. He was added as a defendant in a civil lawsuit against Sanberg and others associated with Aspiration — renamed Catona Climate last year just before the bankruptcy filing — brought by 11 investors in the company. Ballmer and other defendants are accused of fraud and aiding and abetting fraud, with the plaintiffs seeking at least $50 million in damages.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
