US Justice Dept opens investigation into LA Clippers

US federal prosecutors have now opened a criminal investigation into the recent allegations that the Los Angeles Clippers arranged no-show sponsorship deals with Kawhi Leonard to circumvent the salary cap, according to sources communicating to the New York Times.

The report, published Thursday evening, notes that the investigation is in its early stages, and is being conducted by the US attorney’s office in Brooklyn, New York.

The report also notes that according to two of the people familiar with the matter, this office has a long history of investigating the NBA, and professional sports.

Interestingly, authorities had already begun looking into the matter by the time the NBA handed out the major punishment against the Clippers last week.

The inquiry’s scope, targets, and any possible crimes being looked into are unclear, but it was noted that one subpoena has already been issued by prosecutors as part of the investigation, according to the report.

According to The New York Times, some of the matters that are being looked into by the office include the no-show endorsement deals that Kawhi signed, and whether Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and other team executives used these no-show deals as a way to circumvent the league’s salary cap.

Now, the report did mention that the individuals familiar with the matter did stress that it was unclear whether the investigation would lead to any criminal charges, or even the evidence being presented to a grand jury.

To add some context, the case was initially brought to light by journalist Pablo Torre finds out in September, 2025, before being investigated by the NBA not long after. During the events surrounding the Kawhi Leonard trade to Toronto (part 2), The NBA released its findings, in which the Clippers forfeited five first round picks, fined $30 million, Kawhi fined $700,000, and several members of the organization receiving year-long suspensions.