Clippers Could Receive Big Punishment Over Kawhi Leonard Controversy

"Any speculation would be crazy," he added. "These were guys who committed fraud. Look, they conned me! They conned me!"

Ballmer, Clippers' Potential Punishment

As the NBA's investigation continues — led by law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz — potential punishments for the Clippers have been outlined.

According to Section 3 of Article XIII of the NBA's collective bargaining agreement, which details the ‘Penalties’ within the section that covers salary cap circumvention, any team that violates league rules for a first time, as well as the player, could face the following punishments:

• A fine of up to $7.5 million.
• The “direct forfeiture of draft picks.”
• The voiding of the player’s contract, “or any Renegotiation, Extension, or amendment of a Player Contract, between such player and such Team.”
• A fine of up to $350,000 for the player.
• A suspension for up to one year for “any Team personnel found to have willfully engaged in such violation.”
• The voiding of any transaction or agreement found to have violated league rules, and the forced forfeiture of funds received in the deal “unless the player establishes by a preponderance of the evidence that he was unaware of the violation.”

If the Clippers are found to have intentionally circumvented the salary cap, the most extreme of those punishments will certainly be considered. And in the event that Leonard's contract is voided, several teams around the NBA would be in the mix to land him.

All of that is contingent, of course, on whether the NBA finds sufficient evidence. If the Clippers had their way, it wouldn't take long to prove the opposite.

“Neither Mr. Ballmer nor the Clippers circumvented the salary cap or engaged in any misconduct related to Aspiration," the Clippers wrote in a statement. "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."