Clippers face federal criminal probe after NBA punishes team over Kawhi Leonard deals
Federal Prosecutors Probe Los Angeles Clippers’ Alleged Off‑the‑Books Deals for Kawhi Leonard
Federal prosecutors have opened a criminal inquiry into the Los Angeles Clippers’ alleged use of undisclosed sponsorship agreements to pay former San Antonio Spurs star Kawhi Leonard in a way that would bypass the NBA’s salary‑cap restrictions. The investigation, being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn, began before the league announced a slate of penalties that include a $30 million fine, the forfeiture of the team’s first‑round draft picks from 2029 through 2033 and a one‑year suspension for owner Steve Ballmer, with two senior executives also suspended.
The inquiry follows a year‑long review by the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, which the NBA described as a “pattern of misconduct.” A grand jury has already issued at least one subpoena, and prosecutors are concentrating on a reported $28 million endorsement deal with Aspiration Partners—a green‑finance company that later filed for bankruptcy. Its co‑founder, Joe Sanberg, was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for fraud.
“We are examining whether Ballmer and the Clippers’ top executives helped facilitate side deals that compensated Leonard beyond the NBA’s salary‑cap limits,” a prosecutor told reporters. The Securities and Exchange Commission has also joined the probe; Daktronics, the firm that supplied displays for the team’s Intuit Dome, confirmed that regulators requested records related to its sponsorship agreements with Leonard.
Kawhi Leonard’s uncle and manager, Dennis Robertson, received a five‑year NBA ban, and Leonard has been ordered to pay $700 k in restitution. Leonard has defended his conduct, saying, “Integrity and respect for this game are fundamental to who I am. 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.” He added that he entered into his Clippers contract and the other agreements “in good faith,” with no knowledge of any effort to circumvent the salary cap.
The Clippers, in a statement released on Saturday, “vehemently reject the NBA’s findings, which are the result of a heavily biased investigation seeking to justify a predetermined narrative rather than facts and evidence.” The team also said it would “vigorously challenge these findings and penalties through every avenue available to us and look forward to an ethical and impartial arbitration process.”
David Kelley, Ballmer’s attorney, wrote to Commissioner Adam Silver calling the league’s investigation a “witch hunt” and a “gross injustice.” Kelley argued that league counsel had privately acknowledged facts that contradicted the NBA’s public position, and he stressed that federal authorities had previously determined Ballmer was “a victim of Joe Sanberg’s fraud, not a participant.”
Ballmer and the Clippers are reportedly considering a federal lawsuit against the NBA to block the sanctions. However, the ongoing criminal investigation could complicate that effort. If key witnesses invoke their Fifth Amendment rights to avoid self‑incrimination, civil litigation could be delayed.
Neither the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Clippers, nor the NBA has released further comments on the investigation. The federal probe is still in its early stages, and its ultimate findings remain to be seen.
