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NBA starts investigation after report of Kawhi Leonard receiving $28M off the books
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Allegedly Clippers paid Leonard $50 million through landscaping company

Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard is at the center of controversy after investigative journalist Pablo Torre reported that the forward received $28 million off the books from the franchise.

According to Torre, documents show the money was funneled through a landscaping company, which had been financed with $50 million by Clippers owner Steve Ballmer. The arrangement was allegedly designed to circumvent the NBA’s strict salary-cap regulations.

Such practices are explicitly forbidden. The league has precedent for severe punishment in similar cases — most notably in the late 1990s, when the Minnesota Timberwolves were stripped of five first-round draft picks, fined millions of dollars, and saw Joe Smith’s contract voided after an illegal salary-cap scheme. Smith was later forced to sign elsewhere, joining the Detroit Pistons.

The NBA confirmed it has launched an investigation into the allegations involving Leonard and the Clippers. Leonard is one of the league’s most decorated active players, a six-time All-Star, two-time NBA champion, two-time Finals MVP, and a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team. He is currently in the first season of a three-year, $150 million contract that runs through 2027.