The Los Angeles Clippers’ salary-cap scandal just went from an NBA headache to a federal problem.
Federal prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation into the franchise over allegations it circumvented the NBA’s salary cap involving star player Kawhi Leonard.
The probe comes just days after the NBA dropped a staggering punishment on the Clippers, fining the team $30 million, suspending owner Steve Ballmer for one year and stripping the franchise of five first-round draft picks.
Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and Kawhi Leonard received different punishments for the Clippers’ circumventing the league’s salary cap. Getty Images
President of business operations Gillian Zucker (one year) and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank (six months) were also suspended for their role in the scandal.
It wasn’t clear as of Thursday what possible crimes federal prosecutors are investigating, or which people are the target of the federal inquiry.
It also wasn’t clear whether criminal charges would come from the investigation.
Spokespeople for the Clippers and the NBA didn’t respond to messages from The California Post on Thursday asking about the investigation.
“The NBA’s collectively bargained system for determining player compensation is a fundamental component of the basketball competition that the league oversees for the benefit of the teams and players and ultimately the fans,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement after the Clippers’ punishments were announced. “I am deeply disappointed by the flagrant violations of our rules and by the Clippers’ institutional and leadership failures that led to this misconduct. The severity of the penalties reflects the seriousness of the violations.”
The Clippers aren’t taking the league’s punishment lying down.
The team said in a statement last week that it intends to “vigorously challenge” the NBA’s findings and penalties.
Kawhi Leonard in action against the Sacramento Kings at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, on Dec. 30, 2025. Getty Images
“We vehemently reject the NBA’s findings, which are the result of a heavily biased investigation seeking to justify a predetermined narrative rather than facts and evidence. What the league told us privately differs from what it announced today publicly, and they have not held themselves close to the standard Commissioner [Adam] Silver set at the start of this investigation to ensure it’s fairness and accuracy,” the statement read.
But now the stakes are considerably higher.
What began as a dispute over NBA rules has moved into the realm of a criminal investigation by federal prosecutors.
LA Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) dunks in the first half against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Friday, March 28, 2025, in Brooklyn, NY. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
The league has already delivered a massive blow to the franchise; the federal probe threatens to turn the controversy into an even bigger crisis.
There isn’t an appeal or arbitration process available to the Clippers to challenge the NBA’s findings. In other words, if the Clippers want to fight against the league’s punishments, they’ll have to take it to court.
At the center of the allegations is Leonard, a two-time NBA champion, two-time Finals MVP and seven-time All-Star widely recognized as one of the greatest two-way players in basketball history.
Leonard was forced to pay the NBA $700,000 for restitution for improper benefits provided by the Clippers, while his uncle and former business manager, Dennis Robertson, has been banned by the NBA from all business dealings for five years.
Kawhi Leonard attends the match between Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan and Naomi Osaka of Japan during the quarterfinals of the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, at Sobeys Stadium in Toronto, Ontario. Getty Images
In a statement he issued after the league’s punishments were announced, Leonard stated he accepted “full responsibility for lapses in judgment by people within my inner circle and regret the distraction this situation has caused the fans and my family.”
His statement continued: “I entered into my contract with the Clippers as well as the agreements in question in good faith, fully committed to fulfilling my obligations and with no knowledge of any intent on anyone’s part to circumvent the salary cap.”
Leonard also alluded to returning to Toronto as part of the trade between the Clippers and Raptors that was agreed upon in late June but was halted in light of the investigation.
The Department of Justice is the second government entity to investigate the Clippers-Leonard scandal.
Daktronics acting CFO Howard Atkins said during a recent earnings call with investors that the Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking information concerning the South Dakota-based company — which built the $100 million video board inside the Clippers’ Intuit Dome — and its relationship with Leonard.
Daktronics, along with Aspiration Partners, Boingo Wireless and Lockton Insurance, was one of the four companies with endorsement deals with Leonard that were at the center of the NBA’s investigation.
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