The NBA All-Star Game won’t be moved this season despite the league’s investigation into the Los Angeles Clippers and owner Steve Ballmer.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver confirmed Monday the All-Star weekend festivities this season will take place at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, as planned in February.
“There’s no contemplation of moving the All-Star Game, and planning for the All-Star Game and the surrounding activities are operating completely independently of the ongoing investigation,” Silver said, via the Associated Press.
The Clippers officially moved into the Intuit Dome last season after years of sharing Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles with the Lakers, the WNBA’s Sparks and the NHL’s Kings. The Intuit Dome, which sits next to both SoFi Stadium and The Forum in Inglewood, will also host basketball during the 2028 Olympics.
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There has been speculation about the All-Star Game being moved away from the Intuit Dome in recent weeks after journalist Pablo Torre broke a story about allegations of salary cap circumvention with star Kawhi Leonard. Leonard allegedly signed a $28 million contract with tree-planting nonprofit Aspiration for what was essentially a “no-show” job. That company was allegedly funded by Ballmer and the Clippers.
Ballmer has said he was “defrauded” by Aspiration, which has since gone bankrupt, but Torre reported that Ballmer continued to donate to the organization well after Aspiration started showing red flags.
The league has since launched an investigation into the scandal, though Silver said that it would need “clear evidence” that the Clippers violated its rules in order to take action against the team. The league can issue significant punishments if it finds that the Clippers violated its salary cap rules, including fines, voiding contracts or even the loss of draft picks.
Leonard, who joined the Clippers ahead of the 2019-2020 campaign, averaged 21.5 points and 5.9 rebounds per game last season. He dismissed the allegations when he was asked about them at the team’s media day last month.
“I don’t read headlines or do conspiracy theories or anything like that,” he said. “It’s about the season and what we’ve got ahead of us right now. The NBA is going to do their job. None of us did no wrongdoing. That’s it.”
The NBA’s All-Star weekend is set to take place from Feb. 14-16, 2026.
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