The NBA has declined to suspend Kawhi Leonard or void his contract after its salary-cap circumvention investigation into the Los Angeles Clippers, clearing a major hurdle for his proposed return to the Toronto Raptors.
The league announced Wednesday it stripped the Clippers of five first-round picks from 2029 through 2033 and fined the team $30 million US after an independent investigation found a pattern of misconduct and multiple significant rules violations.
Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and president of business operations Gillian Zucker were suspended for one year, while president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank was suspended for six months.
Leonard was ordered to pay the NBA $700,000 after the investigation found he violated circumvention rules by obtaining off-court income opportunities with the Clippers' assistance and failing to reimburse personal expenses paid by the team.
"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," the team said in a statement. "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 its fairness and accuracy."
The Clippers said they will "now fight just as hard to demonstrate our innocence. We intend to vigorously challenge these findings and penalties through every avenue available to us and look forward to an ethical and impartial arbitration process."
Raptors put blockbuster Kawhi Leonard trade on hold pending conclusion of NBA's probe
The league said it and the players' union agreed to confirm the penalties as final and binding on all parties. It said the outside law firm continues to receive information involving the investigation, and the league "will consider further action as appropriate."
"I am deeply disappointed by the flagrant violations of our rules and by the Clippers' institutional and leadership failures that led to this misconduct," Silver said in a statement. "The severity of the penalties reflects the seriousness of the violations."
Leonard's uncle and former business manager Dennis Robertson was banned from conducting business with NBA teams and their affiliates for five years.
"I accept 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," Leonard said in a statement issued through his new agent, Harrison Gaines.
"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 said in his statement.
"As I return to Toronto, I am focused on what I can control, closing this chapter, and moving forward with a clean slate," Leonard said.
The Raptors put Kawhi Leonard's trade on hold. Why he's being investigated
The Raptors and Clippers put a proposed trade involving Leonard on hold in July pending the outcome of the investigation. The deal would send Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two unprotected first-round picks, a 2027 pick swap and two second-round selections to Los Angeles.
