NBA hires law firm to investigate Kawhi Leonard, Clippers in Aspiration deal

The NBA has retained New York law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to conduct its investigation into Kawhi Leonard’s controversial endorsement contract with Aspiration, a now-bankrupt environmental finance company.

According to The Athletic, the move is the clearest sign yet that the league is treating the allegations against the Clippers and owner Steve Ballmer with the utmost seriousness.

Employees of Aspiration told the “Pablo Torre Finds Out” podcast that Leonard’s four-year, $28 million endorsement was a “no-show job” designed to funnel money to the All-Star forward while sidestepping the salary cap.

Ballmer has denied any wrongdoing, saying his involvement ended with a simple introduction between Leonard and Aspiration executives in 2021.

“These were guys who committed fraud. They conned me,” Ballmer told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne.

Still, the stakes are significant. Wachtell Lipton is the same firm the NBA previously hired to investigate two of the league’s biggest ownership scandals.

In 2014, the firm handled the probe into Donald Sterling’s racist remarks, which ultimately forced Sterling to sell the Clippers. In 2022, Wachtell investigated Robert Sarver after reports of repeated inappropriate conduct, leading to his sale of the Phoenix Suns.

The NBA has already begun interviewing key parties, including Leonard, Ballmer and Aspiration executives, while digging through documents for a potential paper trail.

As ESPN’s Shams Charania reported, the league is looking for evidence of salary-cap circumvention, similar to the Joe Smith case that cost the Timberwolves multiple first-round picks in the late 1990s.

Whether this case rises to that level remains to be seen, but the combination of a massive sponsorship deal, a $28 million side contract and Aspiration’s bankruptcy has ensured the spotlight will remain firmly on the Clippers.