The NBA has handed the Los Angeles Clippers the largest punishment in league history following a year-long investigation into the team’s dealings involving Kawhi Leonard.
The league found that the Clippers circumvented NBA salary cap rules to provide millions of dollars to Leonard through off-court income opportunities.
The punishment is massive: The Clippers will forfeit their next five first-round draft picks, in 2029, 2030, 2031, 2032 and 2033.
Team owner Steve Ballmer was also fined $30 million and suspended for one year for “knowingly seeking to help Mr. Leonard obtain off-court income opportunities.”
The penalties extend beyond Ballmer and the franchise.
Leonard was ordered to pay a $700,000 penalty, while his former business manager and uncle, Dennis Robertson, was banned from conducting business with NBA teams for five years.
Clippers President of Business Operations Gillian Zucker was suspended for one year without pay for her involvement in the matter and for lying to investigators, according to the NBA.
President of Basketball Operations Lawrence Frank was suspended for six months without pay after the league found that he approved impermissible expenses and endorsed improper player arrangements.
The Clippers, however, are pushing back strongly against the league’s findings.
In a statement, the team said it “vehemently” rejected the NBA’s conclusions and accused the investigation of being biased and driven by a predetermined narrative.
The Clippers said they cooperated with the investigation “fully and in good faith” and vowed to challenge both the findings and penalties through every available avenue.
Leonard also addressed the ruling, accepting responsibility for what he described as lapses in judgment by people within his inner circle.
“Integrity and respect for this game are fundamental to who I am,” Leonard said in a statement released through his new agent, Harrison Gaines.
The Clippers star said he entered his contract with the team and the agreements at the center of the investigation “in good faith,” adding that he had no knowledge of any intention to circumvent the salary cap.
He also expressed regret over the distraction the situation caused fans and his family.
Leonard said he is now focused on moving forward and controlling what comes next.
“As I return to Toronto, I am focused on what I can control, closing this chapter, and moving forward with a clean slate,” he said.
For the Clippers, however, the fallout from the investigation is only beginning.
With five future first-round picks forfeited, a $30 million owner fine, multiple suspensions and Leonard himself penalized, the NBA has delivered a historic response to its findings — one the franchise says it intends to fight.
