The NBA announced that it has stripped the Clippers club of five first-round NBA draft picks, which the Los Angeles club will lose during the 2029-2033 period.
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Clippers owner billionaire Steve Ballmer was fined as much as 30 million USD. Moreover, he was suspended from any NBA league activities for one year.
NBA star Kawhi Leonard was fined 700 thousand USD.
The league determined that the Clippers and the persons managing the club, when signing a contract with K. Leonard, deliberately sought to help the player receive income not only under the NBA player contract but also from a business deal under a sponsorship agreement with the now-defunct company Aspiration. This is considered a serious violation of the NBA salary cap, which sets specific amounts that can be paid to players.
It is believed that the Clippers may have helped K. Leonard and his representatives obtain about 28 million dollars through illegal actions.
Other individuals also faced sanctions for these actions: Clippers vice president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank was suspended from duties without pay for six months for participating in unauthorized sponsorship agreements and for approving unauthorized income for K. Leonard.
Clippers president of business operations Gillian Zucker was suspended from duties without pay for one year, as she was found guilty of unauthorized sponsorship agreements and for making false statements to investigators.
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The NBA also stated that the Clippers organization will be subject to a monitoring and compliance program for five years.
“I have no doubt that this is the harshest punishment in NBA history,” said famous US journalist Bill Simmons.
K. Leonard, who signed a new contract with the Toronto Raptors club a few months ago, has already issued an official statement following the NBA verdict:
“Fairness and respect for this game are essential traits of my character. I take full responsibility for the carelessness of those closest to me and regret the chaos this situation has caused to fans and my family. I made the contract with the Clippers, as well as the corresponding agreements, honestly, fully committed to fulfilling my obligations and unaware of any intentions to circumvent the salary cap. For 15 years, my priority has been to give everything to my family, the game, and those I share the court with. Returning to Toronto, I focus on what I can control, closing this chapter, and moving forward with a clean slate,” the NBA star’s statement reads.
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