On Wednesday, it was announced that Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers were under investigation for an alleged move that allowed them to circumvent the NBA salary cap. Pablo Torre reported that Leonard had been paid $28 million for a no-show job with the now-bankrupt company Aspiration.
Now, additional context is being added to these reports.
“The $28 million deal was to be paid in quarterly installments over four years, but it was not the only compensation Leonard received. According to a high-level source, Leonard also cut a side deal with Aspiration to receive an additional $20 million in company stock. The stock was to be paid out from Sanberg’s personal holdings in the company over four years,” reported John Karalis of The Boston Globe. “That brought the total of promised compensation to Leonard to $48 million. Around the same time as the Leonard deal, Aspiration was going through its rounds of fundraising.”
Kalaris likened it to “getting a commitment on Shark Tank after only a couple of questions.”
A huge development
The NBA has since announced that the Los Angeles Clippers were under investigation for the alleged incident, and if it turns out to be true, the consequences could be dire.
A quarter century ago, the Minnesota Timberwolves found themselves in a similar situation when they tried to circumvent the league salary cap with player Joe Smith, and it ultimately ended up costing them several first round draft picks and over $3 million, as well as multiple suspensions within the organization.
Making matters even more embarrassing for the Clippers is that all of this alleged shady activity has gone on, and they have absolutely nothing to show for it. Los Angeles' one appearance in the Conference Finals came when Leonard wasn't even in the lineup, and the team has now lost in the first round for the past three years in a row, including this year to the Denver Nuggets when Leonard was healthy.
In any case, it could be a while before we find out the final results of the NBA's investigation into the Leonard allegations.
