This question, sadly, hits home for the team’s owner, Steve Ballmer, and their star player, Kawhi Leonard. The league opened an investigation after the allegations broke. Reports suggested that the Clippers had hidden payments to Leonard to get around salary cap rules.
As you may have read last week, a firestorm broke out when an unnamed libertarian alleged to be an ex-employee of Aspiration. They first disclosed the charges in an interview with podcaster Pablo Torre. The NBA has in turn retained the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to lead this investigation.
During his annual news conference at the conclusion of the league’s Board of Governors meetings in midtown Manhattan, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver addressed the situation. He encouraged judges to take a step back and look at “the totality of the evidence,” instead of jumping to judgment based on looks alone.
“The burden is on the league if we’re going to discipline a team, an owner, a player or any constituent members of the league,” Silver stated, underscoring the seriousness with which the league intends to approach these allegations. He noted, “I think as with any process that requires a fundamental sense of fairness, the burden should be on the party that is, in essence, bringing those charges.”
Silver and Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum traveled to Europe this summer to meet with various stakeholders regarding different league matters, including this investigation. As the bid inquiry ramps up, Silver has consistently promised stakeholders that they’re focused on making sure that the bidding process is fair from start to finish.
“Let’s all withhold judgment, let’s do this investigation and then we will come back to you in terms of our findings.” – Adam Silver
To the NBA’s credit, the league has refused to back down from signals that would damage the integrity of its league and brand. Silver repeated that he has an independent obligation to be a steward for both. The crux of the ongoing investigation will decide if the Clippers or Leonard did anything wrongly.
Silver shared his hope that everyone, from Ballmer to Leonard, be given a fair shake throughout this process. “I’d want anybody else in the situation Mr. Ballmer is in now, or Kawhi Leonard for that matter, to be treated the same way I would want to be treated if people were making allegations against me,” he remarked.
The league’s investigation hits at a precarious moment for franchises, which are increasingly under the microscope over financial accountability. The truth is, as Silver understood, evaluating actual or potential violations is not an easy task. Those recent boom times in franchise valuations would introduce more noise into the marketplace.
“Part of the difficulty in potentially assessing it is a sense of long-term value of the league, and a little bit maybe it’s a high-class problem, but as with some of the recent jumps in franchise valuations, that sort of creates some confusion in the marketplace about how you might even price an expansion franchise,” – Adam Silver
Aside from calling for the investigation, Silver used the opportunity to announce a big change to the NBA All-Star Game format. To start, the league is hoping to roll out a three-team model with 16 American-based players and eight internationals. Our hope is to have this new format ready to go by the start of the regular season.
“I think in the case of the NBA, this is what I’m trying to convey, particularly to younger players, is that All-Star is a big deal,” Silver stated regarding the importance of maintaining excitement around one of basketball’s most anticipated events.
However the Clippers’ investigation goes, there’s no clear picture of what awaits Leonard — or the Clippers. The NBA cares deeply about protecting the integrity of its league, enforcing rules evenly across teams, and maintaining a level playing field. What happens with this investigation could have major consequences for everyone.
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