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Jalen Brunson, Knicks Draw Attention After Kawhi Leonard Report

Originally posted on Athlon Sports
By Kevin Matthew Borba | Last updated Sep 3, 2025 7:50 PM ET

In a move to undermine the NBA salary cap restrictions, the Los Angeles Clippers reportedly paid two-time NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard an additional $28 million via what has been called a "no-show job."

Investigative journalist and former ESPN personality Pablo Torre broke the news on Wednesday on his podcast titled "Pablo Torre Finds Out," revealing that the Clippers allegedly paid Leonard using a "fraudulent tree-planting company" funded by team owner Steve Ballmer.

Torre revealed that this information came to light after the tree brokerage company, Aspiration, filed for bankruptcy. Among the names/entities featured as creditors on the filings were the Los Angeles Clippers and Leonard's LLC, KL2 Aspire. Via an anonymous source from Aspiration, Torre discovered that this $28 million payment to Leonard was used to "circumvent" the salary cap.

Exclusive: Kawhi Leonard signed a $28M endorsement deal for a "no-show job" with a fraudulent tree-planting company funded by $50M from Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, according to documents obtained by @PabloTorre.

"It was to circumvent the salary cap," an inside source says. pic.twitter.com/F6z5pNEkI1
— Pablo Torre Finds Out (@pablofindsout) September 3, 2025

After the ordeal was revealed and the NBA announced it would now investigate the situation, Jalen Brunson's deal with the New York Knicks immediately began trending on social media.

While making an appearance on the "Dan Patrick Show," Torre was asked directly if Brunson was next, and while he seemed to be joking, he did admit he'd look into it.

"My tip line has never been more used by enemies of Jalen Brunson," joked Torre. "Like 'Look into that one.' As well as James Harden...Well look, how we arrived at the Knicks, this is where I'll have to defer to the reporting I may or may not do on this. Certainly was interesting right? Like okay, that's a pretty good deal for the Knicks...I don't want to get ahead of myself...It's a bit of a tease."

Last July, the two-time NBA All-Star inked a four-year $156.5 million extension, despite being in line for a five-year $250 million deal had he waited until after the following offseason, according to the New York Post.

The move helped the Knicks avoid the second round, while also giving them extra money to extend Mikal Bridges.

While nothing is final at this time, if there were intentional acts to undermine the NBA, hefty punishments could be delivered in the future.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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