NBA hits Clippers with record $30 million fine in Leonard case

The NBA has fined the Los Angeles Clippers $30 million after concluding that the franchise violated salary rules in matters involving Kawhi Leonard's off-court income. BBC Sport reported that the penalty is the largest fine in league history and that the NBA's report found Leonard had pressed the team to obtain income opportunities away from basketball.

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The investigation followed a September 2025 report by podcast journalist Pablo Torre concerning a $28 million endorsement agreement between Leonard and Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC. That contract was examined as a possible breach of league rules. According to BBC Sport, the NBA described its inquiry as a month-long investigation that uncovered multiple significant violations and a broader pattern of misconduct.

The financial sanction is only one part of the punishment. The Clippers must forfeit five first-round draft picks covering the years from 2029 through 2033. Team owner Steve Ballmer has been suspended from all league and team activities for 12 months over his role in issues involving Leonard's sponsorship contracts, while Leonard has received a $700,000 fine.

Clippers president of business operations Gillian Zucker has also been suspended without pay for one year. The league said she gave misleading statements to investigators. NBA commissioner Adam Silver characterized the violations as flagrant and said the scale of the penalties reflected their seriousness. The organization and its personnel will also operate under a league-supervised compliance and monitoring program for five years.

Leonard, 35, said after the ruling that he accepted responsibility and regretted the distraction caused to fans and his family. He also maintained that he entered both his Clippers contract and the related agreements in good faith, with no knowledge of an attempt to circumvent the salary cap. The two-time NBA Finals MVP joined Los Angeles in 2019 and spent seven years with the franchise before leaving this year. BBC Sport reported that he is now expected to complete a move to the Toronto Raptors that had been delayed during the investigation.

The Clippers have rejected the NBA's conclusions and said they will pursue every available avenue of appeal. The organization called the inquiry biased and disputed its handling of the evidence. Ballmer's attorney, David Kelley, separately described the matter as a witch hunt and the sanctions as a gross injustice, according to a statement cited by ESPN and reported by BBC Sport. Those objections leave the league's findings contested as the appeal process begins.