Sport: Basketball Country: United States Category: Scores & Results

NBA penalizes Clippers and Kawhi Leonard for salary cap circumvention

Yahoo Sports • 1 min read • Latest: Sep 2, 2026, 9:17 PM

Last updated Sep 2, 2026

NBA penalizes Clippers and Kawhi Leonard for salary cap circumvention

Summary

The NBA issued significant penalties to the Los Angeles Clippers and Kawhi Leonard on Wednesday following an investigation into salary cap circumvention. The league stripped the Clippers of five first-round draft picks spanning from 2029 to 2033 and fined owner Steve Ballmer $30 million. Additionally, the league suspended Ballmer along with president Lawrence Frank and president of business operations Gillian Zucker. Kawhi Leonard received a $700,000 fine for his involvement in the matter. The investigation centered on allegations of improper, lucrative sponsorship deals involving the player and third-party companies. While the Clippers issued a statement rejecting the league's findings as biased, the ruling remains the most severe collective punishment for salary cap violations in recent league history.

Source Links

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By the Numbers

•The NBA stripped the Los Angeles Clippers of five first-round draft picks through 2033.
•Owner Steve Ballmer received a $30 million fine and a suspension.
•Kawhi Leonard was fined $700,000 for his role in the sponsorship scandal.
•The Los Angeles Clippers rejected the findings and characterized the investigation as biased.
•The SEC is reportedly investigating one of the companies involved in the sponsorship deals.

Latest Updates

9:17 PMYahoo Sports — Pablo Torre, Mark Cuban, others react after NBA punishes the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard in sponsorship scandal

What they're saying

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Mark Cuban had previously sparred with Pablo Torre, both on his podcast and on social media, over the Kawhi Leonard-Clippers investigation.
— Yahoo Sportsby Ryan Young

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