Steve Ballmer backs down on NBA punishment, apologizes as Clippers accept US$30 million fine

Among the punishments announced by the NBA following an investigation into the Clippers: a loss of five first-round draft picks and a fine of $30M. Owner Steve Ballmer is suspended from all league and team activities for one year. How shocking is it that Ballmer is being banned, and not Kawai Leonard? The guys from ESPN's 'Pardon the Interruption' have more.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer won’t fight the NBA’s salary cap circumvention punishment in a reversal of the team’s initial defiance and vow to fight against what it called “a heavily biased investigation.”

In his first public comments since the NBA announced a sweeping punishment against the Clippers this month, Ballmer said in a statement posted online Sunday night that the team would comply with the penalties handed down by the league.

The league suspended Ballmer for one year, fined the team US$30 million and forced it to forfeit five first-round draft picks.

Ballmer said the team has paid the fine.

“While there are still disagreements concerning the findings in the report, this is not where I want to focus,” he said. “Team owners should support, not distract.”

Ballmer apologized to Clippers fans, employees and his fellow owners for the “distraction and distress” caused by the investigation that found the team violated salary cap circumvention rules involving Kawhi Leonard.

“This has been a very difficult time for everybody associated with the Clippers, and for that, I have sincere regrets,” Ballmer wrote. “I want to apologize to our fans, employees, and fellow NBA team owners for the distraction and distress this matter has caused, for which I accept responsibility as principal owner.”

The league came down hard on the organization after a nearly yearlong investigation led by an outside law firm. The Clippers had said multiple times that they had done nothing wrong and expected to be exonerated.

After the penalties were announced, the team said it “vehemently” rejected the NBA’s findings and called it “a heavily biased investigation.”

The Clippers also released a letter from Ballmer’s attorney David Kelley to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver in which he described the investigation as “a witch hunt” and the subsequent penalties as a “gross injustice.”

The NBA began investigating in September 2025 whether a US$28 million endorsement contract between Leonard and Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC — a company that filed for bankruptcy last year — broke league rules, following a report by journalist Pablo Torre. Earlier this year, Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to defrauding investors and lenders of at least US$248 million.

The league said Ballmer knowingly sought to help Leonard obtain off-court income deals, approved a business deal that he knew was a precondition for Aspiration to enter into an endorsement contract with Leonard, and for failing to create conditions under which his team followed league rules.

Ballmer said the team is “committed to putting this chapter behind us.”

“The challenges ahead of us are significant, but so is our resolve,” he said. “We will continue to build our team and invest in our community. The confidence of our fans is our priority. With our talented roster, outstanding staff and clear vision, I am certain that we will compete at the highest level and be an organization our fans can be proud of.”

Leonard’s trade to the Toronto Raptors has been on hold pending the outcome of the investigation. The Raptors have said they still want Leonard, and he apparently is just as eager to return to the team where he won an NBA title and was Finals MVP in 2019.

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Beth Harris, The Associated Press