Clippers, Ballmer Reportedly Sent Millions To Aspiration Before Kawhi Leonard Payments

The Los Angeles Clippers and owner Steve Ballmer are facing more scrutiny after new reporting linked their financial investments to payments made to Kawhi Leonard.

Torre detailed a series of transactions between Ballmer, the Clippers, and Aspiration, the financial services company that reportedly paid Leonard $28 million for “no-show jobs.” Torre argued the timing raises major questions, on Pablo Torre Finds Out.

Over an 18-month stretch, Ballmer or the Clippers invested $118 million into Aspiration. Some of those payments came when the company was struggling, and several lined up closely with when Leonard signed or received money from Aspiration.

Torre laid out the timeline:

Sept. 14, 2021: Ballmer LLC invests $50M in Aspiration.
Sept. 27, 2021: Clippers announce deal with Aspiration.
April 1, 2022: Clippers send $3M to Aspiration for carbon credits.
April 4, 2022: Clippers send $32M to Aspiration for carbon credits.
April 4, 2022: Leonard signs his $28M deal with Aspiration.
June 17, 2022: Clippers send $21M to Aspiration for carbon credits.
July 6, 2022: Aspiration pays Leonard $1.75M.
Dec. 6, 2022: Clippers co-owner Dennis Wong invests $2M in Aspiration.
Dec. 15, 2022: Aspiration pays Leonard $1.75M.
March 9, 2023: Ballmer LLC invests $10M in Aspiration.
Late March 2023: Government starts to investigate Aspiration.

The overlap, according to Torre, “paints a picture in which the Clippers invested significant money in Aspiration around the time Leonard either signed his deal or a payment was due.”

The reporting also highlighted Aspiration’s business model, which sold carbon credits at a steep mark-up. Torre explained that “if planting a tree only cost 10-20 cents, Aspiration would charge $1, instantly creating profit.”

That revelation caught the attention of former Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, who tweeted that if the Clippers wanted to skirt the salary cap, carbon credits could have been the easiest way to do it.

This is the third straight week Torre has dedicated to the Clippers-Aspiration saga. The NBA has since re-opened its investigation into whether Leonard received impermissible benefits, with commissioner Adam Silver saying the league will need “overwhelming evidence” to hand out punishments.