Why Have the LA Clippers Been Hit With One of the NBA’s Biggest Punishments?

The LA Clippers have been hammered by the NBA after an investigation found the franchise broke salary-cap rules while helping Kawhi Leonard secure millions of dollars in outside income. The punishment is brutal, a real warning message to other teams. 

The Clippers have been fined $30million, stripped of five consecutive first-round draft picks from 2029 to 2033, while owner Steve Ballmer has been suspended from all team and league activities for one year.

So what did the Clippers actually do?

Put simply, NBA teams are not allowed to secretly give players extra compensation outside their contracts.

The league says the Clippers crossed that line.

An independent investigation found the organisation helped arrange endorsement opportunities for Leonard with companies that were already doing business with the Clippers, including Aspiration Partners, Boingo Wireless, Daktronics and Lockton Insurance.

According to the NBA, the Clippers did not simply introduce Leonard to potential sponsors. The franchise allegedly encouraged companies to make deals with him by offering or providing those businesses with work from the Clippers in return.

The most controversial arrangement involved Aspiration, with Leonard previously linked to a $28m endorsement deal with the company. The wider investigation ultimately found a pattern of attempts to provide Leonard with additional off-court income outside the normal salary-cap system.

In simple terms, the NBA believes the Clippers helped Leonard earn extra money because he was their player, creating compensation that should not have existed outside his official contract.

What is the punishment?

It stretches well beyond the $30m fine. Ballmer has been banned for a year after the NBA found he knowingly attempted to help Leonard obtain outside income.

Clippers president of business operations Gillian Zucker has also been suspended without pay for one year, while president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank has received a six-month unpaid suspension.

Leonard must personally pay the NBA $700,000, while his former business manager Dennis Robertson has been banned from conducting business with NBA teams for five years.

The Clippers will also be monitored by the NBA for the next five years. The real killer could be those draft picks. Losing every first-round selection from 2029 through 2033 removes five of the franchise's most valuable tools for rebuilding, trading or adding young talent.

A $30m fine dents the bank account; five missing first-rounders could hurt the Clippers for a generation.