Burden on NBA to prove wrongdoing by Clippers over Leonard deal — Silver

NEW YORK, United States — NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Wednesday (Thursday Manila time) there will be no rush to judgment by the league on allegations the Los Angeles Clippers circumvented salary cap rules through another company's phony endorsement deal for Kawhi Leonard.

"I'm reserving judgment because I don't know the facts here," Silver said at a press conference after the league's board of governors' meeting in New York.

"I don't know what Kawhi was paid. I don't know what he did or didn't do. We'll leave all that to the investigation."

A podcast report by journalist Pablo Torre alleged this month that the Clippers skirted salary cap rules through a now-bankrupt company called Aspiration, in which Clippers owner Steve Ballmer was an investor.

Torre reported that Leonard signed a contract worth $28 million over four years in 2021 to market and endorse Aspiration but never did so, saying an unidentified Aspiration employee told him the payment was to get around NBA salary cap rules.

The Clippers, and Ballmer himself, have vigorously denied the claim, and Silver said Wednesday it would be up to the league to prove there was any impropriety.

"The burden is on the league if we're going to discipline a team, an owner, a player or any constituent members of the league," Silver said. "I think as with any process that requires a fundamental sense of fairness, the burden should be on the party that is, in essence, bringing those charges."

Silver said the goal of an investigation was to determine "if there really was impropriety" and he would "be reluctant to act if there was sort of a mere appearance of impropriety."

Leonard signed a four-year contract extension worth $173 million with the Clippers in August 2021 and the following month, the team signed a $300-million sponsor deal with Aspiration, whose name went on team jerseys.

Ballmer has confirmed that the Clippers "made an introduction" of Leonard to Aspiration, which is acceptable under league rules, but said the club had no part in any separate endorsement deal between Aspiration and the player.

In an interview with ESPN, Ballmer said that he himself had been "conned" by Aspiration, as had other investors.

Silver said he had "very broad powers in these situations" to levy sanctions but would only do so if the league probe confirms wrongdoing.

"I've been around the league long enough in different permutations of allegations and accusations that I'm a big believer in due process and fairness, and we need to now let the investigation run its course," Silver said.