The Kawhi Leonard investigation is hitting what sources describe as one of its final stages, and the man signing the Clippers’ checks just sat for another round of questions in New York.
Ben Golliver of ESPN reported that Clippers owner Steve Ballmer met with lawyers from Wachtell Lipton last week in what multiple people familiar with the situation described as likely one of the last steps before the NBA wraps up its inquiry. Ballmer had already sat for an interview with the same firm before, but the league wanted to go back for more.
The Backstory That Everyone Kind of Forgot About
This whole thing started almost a year ago when sports reporter Pablo Torre alleged that the Clippers used a now-defunct company called Aspiration to funnel money under the table to Leonard. The idea, according to the claim, was to bypass the NBA salary cap structure. The league has been poking around ever since.
Meanwhile, Leonard went out and played maybe his best regular season as a Clipper. That raised his trade value considerably. The Clippers thought they had a deal worked out with the Toronto Raptors that would bring back a pretty nice return package. But then the Raptors caught wind that they might inherit whatever punishment comes down, and they put the whole thing on pause.
Indefinitely.
What Happens Next Depends Entirely on the NBA’s Findings
If the league finds the Clippers broke rules, that trade package could shrink. Or vanish. Or get replaced by something nobody’s even talking about yet. The investigation has been dragging on long enough that everyone involved seems ready for some kind of resolution, even if it’s bad news.
Ballmer’s second sit-down with the Wachtell lawyers feels like the kind of thing that happens when a lawyer wants to button up loose ends before writing a final report. The Clippers haven’t confirmed anything about the meeting, and the NBA isn’t saying much either. But when the team owner keeps flying to New York to answer questions, it’s not nothing.
Leonard’s situation is basically frozen until this gets sorted. He’s still a Clipper for now. But that could change fast once the league makes a call. Whether that means a lighter penalty, a heavy fine, or something that actually reshapes the roster is the part nobody knows yet.
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