Why investigation in Kawhi Leonard, Clippers could stretch into 2027: Update suggests resolution not close originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The NBA’s investigation into allegations that the Clippers violated league rules to circumvent the salary cap and sign Kawhi Leonard has proven a contentious process. Things aren’t expected to get any easier in the next few weeks and months, either.
Reports of alleged malfeasance between Los Angeles and its former star player sprawled across newspaper clippings last fall, with reports suggesting that the Clips used a loophole to give Leonard a $28 million raise outside the glare of the salary cap.
The investigation has lasted the better part of 10 months. A recent report indicates that we might not be any closer to a resolution of the case.
With that, here’s a look at a potential timeline for the conclusion of the league’s probe into Los Angeles’ courtship of Leonard in 2021.
MORE: Why Kawhi Leonard’s trade to Raptors is being held up amid NBA investigation
Why investigation in Kawhi Leonard, Clippers could stretch into 2027
ESPN reported that the National Basketball Players Association — the player’s union — “wouldn’t hesitate” to take the NBA’s investigation into Los Angeles’ affairs to arbitration if the league seeks out penalties without obtaining sufficient evidence substantiating the claim that the Clippers have denied for the better part of a year.
On July 9, NBPA executive director David Kelly told reporters that he didn’t believe Wachtell Lipton — the New York-based law firm the NBA hired to investigate Los Angeles’ actions — had uncovered anything worth of punishment.
For a potential decision to be reached before the turn of the new year, it is expected that both the NBA and the NBPA will have to reach some form of consensus on the investigation’s findings and settlement, including any form of punishment doled out towards actors judged to have violated league rules.
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Earlier this month, commissioner Adam Silver declared that the NBA’s investigation needed “to be wrapped up before the beginning of next season.”
He also claimed the probe had taken “longer than I would have hoped, there’s no question about that.”
If the league can present indisputable evidence that Los Angeles circumvented the salary cap to pay Leonard, the league, Clippers and union could work to find a speedy solution to agree on the findings and work up potential discipline for those involved in the infraction. If not, the matter could be brought to a neutral arbitrator jointly appointed by the NBA and NBPA. The league would have to wait even longer to figure out whether it could dole out punishment towards the player or franchise.
Why is the NBA investigation Kawhi Leonard’s Clippers contract
The NBA launched an investigation into the Clippers amid allegations that Los Angeles used a sustainability company called Aspiration to circumvent salary cap rules.
Investigative journalist Pablo Torre first revealed the nature of the story, citing a source who claimed that Los Angeles agreed to a deal with Aspiration. Per Torre, the Clippers used that agreement to funnel an additional $28 million into Leonard’s coffers without it counting against the salary cap.
Aspiration dissolved in 2025 after co-founder Joe Sanberg was arrested on fraud charges. The Clippers have denied claims that they used the company to pay Leonard.
Possible penalties for salary cap circumvention
If the league does find substantive evidence that Los Angeles used Aspiration to circumvent the salary cap, it is likely that the punishment for the act will be severe for the organisation and player alike. It’s unlikely that the league would overturn Leonard’s trade to the Raptors. However, it seems likely that a hefty fine, potential draft sanctions, or both could be on the cards for the Clippers.
In 2000, the league found that the Timberwolves circumvented salary cap rules to sign Joe Smith. Minnesota was summarily docked five first-round picks (two were eventually returned) and handed a $3.5 million fine (equivalent to around $6.56 million in today’s money). Then-owner Glen Taylor was suspended, while then-head coach Kevin McHale was forced to take a leave of absence. Smith’s contract was voided, and his Bird Rights were revoked, limiting the amount of money he could receive.
Contemporary tampering violations have seen teams forfeit second-round picks. Given the notoriety of Leonard’s case, it’s unclear whether such a sanction would be deemed serious enough.
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