The Department of Justice has opened a criminal investigation into the Los Angeles Clippers’ dealings with Kawhi Leonard, The New York Times reported Thursday. Federal prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn – the Eastern District of New York – are examining whether the team and the seven-time All-Star violated federal law through secret endorsement arrangements that circumvented the NBA’s salary cap.
At least one subpoena has already been issued. The probe is in its earliest stages, and no charges have been filed.
An escalation the league didn’t see coming
The NBA concluded its own year-long investigation in early September, handing down the harshest penalties in league history: a $30 million fine for the franchise, the forfeiture of five first-round draft picks (starting in 2029), a one-year suspension for owner Steve Ballmer, and a six-month ban for president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank. Kawhi Leonard was personally fined $700,000.
The league determined that Ballmer “knowingly” facilitated off-court income opportunities worth tens of millions of dollars for Leonard – deals that, per NBA rules, must be accounted for in the salary cap. The arrangements ran through Leonard’s business manager and involved third-party sponsors who were pressured to sign endorsement deals with the player as a precondition for doing business with the team.
Federal prosecutors are now asking a different question: did any of this cross into criminal territory? The EDNY office has a track record with high-profile sports cases. That same Brooklyn-based office previously handled investigations into college basketball corruption and FIFA-related bribery schemes.
What the Clippers face this season
Los Angeles begins training camp on September 29 carrying the weight of unprecedented institutional penalties – and now a federal criminal probe. Leonard himself was traded to the Toronto Raptors earlier this month, a move the Clippers completed days after the NBA’s ruling. The franchise is now rebuilding around a younger core, with Ben Simmons on a one-year deal and Bradley Beal taking over the No. 3 jersey last worn by Chris Paul.
The federal investigation introduces a layer of legal uncertainty that no team has navigated before. Whether charges ultimately result is unclear – but the EDNY moving at all signals that regulators see conduct worth examining beyond basketball’s internal discipline.
Source: NBC Sports, Yahoo Sports
