Steve Ballmer’s Clippers Deny Allegations as NBA Probes $28M Payments to Kawhi Leonard

Essentially, the franchise is clarifying that the Microsoft co-founder did not intentionally divert money through Aspiration to pay his star player. However, the Pablo Torre investigation seems to have proof that this has taken place.

NBA starts investigation into Steve Ballmer, Clippers, and Kawhi Leonard

The presence of over 3000 pages of documentation has given fans and the media enough proof that this incident could have happened. Once Pablo Torre’s video went viral, it had to come to the attention of the NBA.

Since the allegations are about Steve Ballmer and the Los Angeles Clippers’ tried to circumvent the salary cap, the league had to swing into action. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported about this while on SportsCenter.

NBA spokesman told me today that they have commenced an investigation into these claims about the Los Angeles Clippers and Kawhi Leonard.

Shams Charania revealed

He then went on to add that the league is looking to find hard evidence that Ballmer had redirected funds towards the 2-time NBA Finals MVP. The goal is to look for documentation that can prove the franchise did circumvent the salary cap.

However, circumstantial evidence will not be enough to slap any punishments on the franchise, its owner, or even the star forward. The last time something like this happened was in 2000.

Steve Ballmer and Kawhi Leonard could face 2000 Wolves’ fate if found guilty

The problem with this entire fiasco is that Pablo Torre did not just bring about this investigation to boost the views of his channel. He is an investigative journalist who has worked for premier media houses in the past.

The mere fact that he has documents in his possession to prove it complicates the situation. The NBA, particularly, will lose a lot of face if fans realize that something like this happened right under their nose.

The last time it happened, David Stern was the commissioner, and he imposed a $3.5 million fine on the Minnesota Timberwolves. Along with that, he docked 5 1st round picks, which the Wolves never recovered from.

Then he suspended owner Glen Taylor and asked then-GM Kevin McHale to take a leave of absence. The player involved, Joe Smith, had his contract voided, and his Bird rights were stripped away.

The problem with the Clippers is that these fines may seem too weak as per today’s standards. This could result in a landmark decision by the NBA, something that would send tremors across the league.

At the same time, they cannot think of pushing this under the carpet, considering documentation exists of such an incident, making it a no-win situation for the league.