NBA launches investigation into alleged Kawhi Leonard ‘no show’ endorsement deal to skirt salary cap

Kawhi Leonard had a $28 million endorsement deal with a now bankrupt environmental startup where he did no work, essentially a “no-show job,” for a company Clippers owner Steve Ballmer had made a $50 million investment in, per an investigation from Pablo Torre Finds Out (PTFO), reported Wednesday on his podcast. That investigation claims the Clippers tried to circumvent the salary cap with this deal.

“We are aware of this morning’s media report regarding the LA Clippers and are commencing an investigation,” NBA spokesman Mike Bass told NBC Sports.

That company in question was called Aspiration, a “green bank” whose model was to do large amounts of tree planting to gain carbon credits for its corporate clients. Aspiration had a long list of celebrity endorsements including Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert Downey Jr. and Drake. Leonard agreed to his endorsement deal in 2021; however, the deal was not made public and Leonard never made an appearance or so much as a social media post for Aspiration, PTFO reports.

In 2021, prior to Leonard’s endorsement deal (but after Leonard signed a four-year, $176 million contract extension to stay in Los Angeles), Clippers owner Steve Ballmer made a $50 million investment in Aspiration. The company became a founding partner in the Clippers’ then-under-construction new home, the Intuit Dome, a potentially $300 million deal. Ballmer often emphasized his plans to make the arena a green building.

Torre’s reporting works to connect Ballmer’s donation and Leonard’s endorsement deal through internal documents and comments from multiple Aspiration employees, alleging a functional workaround for the NBA’s salary cap — something that would bring the wrath of the league down on the Clippers, if true.

One source, described by PTFO as a former Aspiration finance employee, said: “We went through a litany of really, really top-tier name contracts. And then, ‘Oh, by the way, we also have a marketing deal with Kawhi Leonard’ — and that if I had any questions about it, essentially don’t, because it was to circumvent the salary cap.” Leonard’s deal with Aspiration gave him the ability to reject anything he didn’t want to do for the company with no consequences, PTFO reported.

The Clippers vehemently deny all the accusations, stating that neither Ballmer nor the Clippers had ties to Leonard’s endorsement deal. They also state that the team severed ties with Aspiration after the company failed to fulfill its end of the agreement with the team and Intuit Dome, and that they were one of the victims of Aspiration’s scam, nothing more.

The Clippers sent this statement to NBC Sports earlier on Wednesday:

“Neither Mr. Ballmer nor the Clippers circumvented the salary cap or engaged in any misconduct related to Aspiration. Any contrary assertion is provably false. The team ended its relationship with Aspiration years ago, during the 2022–23 season, when Aspiration defaulted on its obligations. Neither the Clippers nor Mr. Ballmer was aware of any improper activity by Aspiration or its co-founder until after the government instituted its investigation. The team and Mr. Ballmer stand ready to assist law enforcement in any way they can.”

Later in the day, the Clippers released a more detailed statement.

It is unknown — or, at the very least, has not been proven — whether Ballmer had direct knowledge of Leonard’s endorsement contract with Aspiration.

While all of this with the Clippers was going on, Aspiration and its business model were falling apart. A federal investigation into Aspiration and its eventual bankruptcy led to co-founder Joe Sanberg pleading guilty two weeks ago to defrauding investors of more than $248 million. That investigation is ongoing, as is the bankruptcy. In that bankruptcy, the Clippers, Forum Entertainment (another Ballmer company, this one for a popular concert venue about a mile from the Intuit Dome) and Leonard’s LLC are the three largest creditors, The Athletic reports.

Back in 2019, when Leonard first came to the Clippers after helping lead the Raptors to a title, there were multiple reports that Leonard’s adviser, business partner and uncle, Dennis Robertson, made unreasonable requests such as sponsorship deals, a house, a plane on call, and more — all of which would have violated the CBA. (The Lakers reportedly felt they got played in their Leonard pursuit.) The NBA investigated the matter but found no wrongdoing on the part of the Clippers. That case was several years before and is not directly tied to this investigation.