LOS Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has reversed the team’s initial decision to fight the NBA’s findings in its salary cap circumvention investigation involving Kawhi Leonard, choosing instead to accept the league’s sweeping penalties.
The NBA suspended Ballmer for one year, fined the Clippers $30 million and stripped the franchise of five first-round draft picks. Ballmer said the team has already paid the fine and will move forward from the controversy.
“While there are still disagreements concerning the findings in the report, this is not where I want to focus,” Ballmer said. “Team owners should support, not distract.”
The reversal comes after the Clippers initially vowed to challenge the league’s conclusions, calling the investigation “a heavily biased investigation” and rejecting the penalties “vehemently.”
An outside law firm conducted the league’s nearly yearlong investigation into a $28 million endorsement agreement involving Leonard and Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC, a company that later filed for bankruptcy.
The NBA concluded that Ballmer knowingly sought to help Leonard secure off-court income opportunities and approved a business arrangement tied to the endorsement deal.
Ballmer has now apologized to Clippers fans, employees and fellow owners for the fallout from the investigation and accepted responsibility as the franchise’s principal owner.
“This has been a very difficult time for everybody associated with the Clippers, and for that, I have sincere regrets,” Ballmer said. “I want to apologize to our fans, employees, and fellow NBA team owners for the distraction and distress this matter has caused, for which I accept responsibility as principal owner.”
The sanctions also include a $700,000 fine for Leonard and a six-month suspension for Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank.
Despite the punishment, Ballmer said the organization intends to remain competitive and put the controversy behind it.
“The challenges ahead of us are significant, but so is our resolve,” he said. “We will continue to build our team and invest in our community.”
The case has also complicated Leonard’s reported trade to the Toronto Raptors, which remains on hold pending the fallout from the investigation. Toronto has indicated it still wants the former Finals MVP, who helped the Raptors win the 2019 NBA championship.
For the Clippers, Ballmer’s decision to stop fighting the league marks a dramatic shift from defiance to damage control and leaves the franchise facing the long-term basketball consequences of losing five first-round picks. (Jesus Nathaniel Valdez)
