The NBA on Wednesday levied the largest punishment in league history against the Los Angeles Clippers and owner Steve Ballmer, fining the team $30 million and taking away five first-round picks beginning in 2029.
The move comes after a yearlong investigation determined that the team violated salary cap rules to help send millions of dollars to All-Star forward Kawhi Leonard, The Athletic reported. The team plans to appeal the decision.
In a statement reported by ESPN, the NBA said the probe “found a pattern of misconduct and multiple significant rules violations by the Clippers organization, a prior offender of the salary cap circumvention rules.”
The team will lose its first-round picks in the 2029, 2030, 2031, 2032 and 2033 drafts. Ballmer was suspended for one year, The Athletic reported. The league levied the penalty on Ballmer “for knowingly seeking to help Mr. Leonard obtain off-court income opportunities.”
BREAKING: The NBA has ruled on the Los Angeles Clippers in for salary cap circumvention investigations on Kawhi Leonard after yearlong probe -- stripping the franchise of 5 first-round picks, issuing a $30 million fine to owner Steve Ballmer and suspensions for Ballmer, Lawrence… pic.twitter.com/JCV5bI88BE
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 2, 2026
Other penalties handed down by the league, according to the sports news website, included a five-year ban from engaging with NBA teams for Leonard’s uncle, Dennis Robertson; Leonard, who allegedly made millions from the deal, is required to pay back $700,000; and Clippers president Lawrence Frank was suspended for six months. In addition, Gillian Zucker, the team’s president of business operations, was suspended for one year.
The NBA claimed Ballmer approved a Clippers deal with Aspiration Partners, calling it a violation of the league’s collective bargaining agreement, according to the sports news outlet. Other companies doing business with the team that came under league scrutiny were Boingo Wireless, Daktronics and Lockton Insurance.
The league said that Ballmer knew it was a precondition for Aspiration to enter into a sponsorship deal with the Clippers’ 35-year-old star, according to the sports news outlet.
The Clippers, according to NBA investigators, tried to evade NBA rules on circumvention by creating a “novel theory” that it was permissible to introduce business partners to players if the player or their representative asked for introductions, The Athletic reported.
The Clippers said in a statement that they “vehemently reject the NBA’s findings” and vowed to challenge them, the Los Angeles Times reported. Leonard also issued a statement, saying he had no direct knowledge of the alleged violations.
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