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Feb 4, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) controls the ball against Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) during the second half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

NBA Executive Shares Harsh Reality of Kawhi Leonard Choosing Clippers Over Lakers

Originally posted on Los Angeles Clippers on SI
By Logan Struck | Last updated Sep 4, 2025 10:29 AM ET

The LA Clippers and six-time NBA All-Star Kawhi Leonard have been making headlines recently, but not for the right reasons.

The Clippers have been accused of trying to circumvent the salary cap by paying Leonard $28 million through a fraudulent company, Apsiration. The $28 million was guaranteed to Leonard as long as he played for the Clippers, as part of an endorsement deal, but Leonard never openly endorsed the company, getting paid millions of dollars to "no-show."

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

Of course, this has been a huge deal around the NBA, and with the league investigating it, it is unclear what will happen with Steve Ballmer and the Clippers if they are found guilty of any wrongdoing.

Leonard signing with Clippers in 2019

Of course, this whole ordeal with Aspiration started in 2021, so Leonard signing with the Clippers in 2019 is not directly related, but many fans have been looking back on that decision. Coming off a championship and Finals MVP with the Toronto Raptors, Leonard hit free agency and wanted to move home.

Leonard was deciding between the Los Angeles Lakers, the LA Clippers, and a return to Toronto. Of course, Leonard ultimately decided to team up with Paul George on the Clippers, but the Lakers were undoubtedly a top destination.

There was undoubtedly some controversy that came with Leonard's decision to sign with the Clippers, and the NBA even investigated Dennis Robertson with claims that he was making illegal requests from these teams.

In the end, Kawhi Leonard didn't want to construct a Super Team with the Lakers. He wanted a co-star across the Staples corridor with the Clippers, and made it clear to Steve Ballmer and Lawrence Frank: Get PG, and I'm coming.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 6, 2019

Lakers "dodged a bullet"

Amid all of this controversy around Leonard and the Clippers, an NBA executive told Lakers Daily that the team dodged a bullet by missing out on the star forward in 2019.

"The Lakers wanted Kawhi badly,” the NBA exec said. “Boy, they dodged a massive bullet by not landing him. You think Rich [Paul] and LeBron are hard to deal with? Uncle Dennis (Dennis Robertson) is even worse. He thinks Kawhi is the second coming of Jesus.

"The Lakers dodged a massive bullet by not getting Kawhi. The guy barely plays, doesn’t market the team he’s on and now he’s in the news for the wrong reasons for the second time since signing with the Clippers. This has been a huge headache for Ballmer and Co."

Of course, it is still uncertain whether or not anything will come from this accusation, but the Lakers certainly do not regret missing out on Leonard. Since the 2019 offseason, the Lakers won a championship in 2020 and made another Western Conference Finals appearance in 2023, so it is hard to say they wish they had played things differently.

This article first appeared on Los Angeles Clippers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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