The NBA’s investigation into the Los Angeles Clippers and their ties to the financial firm Aspiration keeps getting stranger. The latest twist involves a proposed marketing campaign that would have turned Kawhi Leonard into a full-blown Marvel-style superhero.
Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic posted images Tuesday on Bluesky showing concept art from the campaign. The artwork placed Leonard at the center of a superhero-themed ad push, complete with dramatic lighting and comic-book aesthetics. It’s unclear why the campaign never went anywhere, but the fact that it existed at all is now part of a much bigger story.
The Investigation That Won’t Go Away
The league is looking into the Clippers’ business relationship with Aspiration, and it’s already caused real damage. Last week, Shams Charania reported that Leonard’s potential trade back to the Toronto Raptors was put on hold while the NBA finishes its review. That’s a massive deal for a player of his caliber and a team that just made a Finals run.
The investigation traces back to reporting by Pablo Torre on his podcast, who obtained internal documents alleging that Clippers owner Steve Ballmer invested $50 million into Aspiration through his personal LLC in September 2021. That same month, the Clippers announced a reported $300 million sponsorship deal with Aspiration, making the company the first founding partner of the new Intuit Dome.
But here’s where it gets complicated. Additional documents cited by Torre reportedly showed a $28 million endorsement agreement for Leonard himself. Investigators are looking at whether the whole sponsorship structure was used to get around the NBA’s salary cap rules. That’s a serious allegation, and it explains why the league is taking its time.
Clippers Push Back
The Clippers released a statement after Charania’s report, saying they’re cooperating fully with the review and remain confident the facts will show they acted appropriately. They also stressed that the NBA hasn’t reached any conclusions yet.
“We continue to cooperate fully with the NBA’s review and remain confident the facts will demonstrate that our organization has acted appropriately throughout this process,” the team said.
They added: “The NBA’s review remains ongoing, and we will refrain from further comment until that process is complete.”
For now, the Kawhi-as-superhero pitch is just another weird footnote in a story that’s already full of them. But with a blockbuster trade on ice and the league digging deeper, this investigation isn’t going anywhere soon.
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