The Los Angeles Clippers are facing serious penalties for potentially circumventing the NBA salary cap, and the impact could be devastating. Still, it may not be all bad for the Clippers, who may get some unintended perks of this ongoing saga.
“I had one person say to me, ‘Man, Steve’s going to win here because you can avoid Kawhi’s contract, get all kinds of salary cap room,” said Sam Amick on Sactown Sports. “The guy has barely played the last couple of years.”
If found guilty, the NBA will look to give punishments to the Clippers and Steve Ballmer, but any fine they could give would account for nothing more than a minor inconvenience for a man worth $131 billion.
“Any fine you give Steve Ballmer is irrelevant because he’s such a wealthy man. But if you take Steve Ballmer out of the arena and ban him from games, that would hurt.”
The Clippers have shown nothing but loyalty to Kawhi Leonard since his arrival, and it seems that Ballmer may have been willing to break the CBA just to ensure his commitment. Of course, just like Joe Smith on the 2000 Timberwolves, Leonard could be forced into free agency if the NBA voids his contract as part of the punishment, and it would change everything for the Clippers.
While losing a star is almost always a negative, Leonard hasn’t exactly been available for the Clippers, and his tenure has been a failure from the start. Since he arrived in 2019, Kawhi has only played one season with at least 60 active games. Last campaign, he played just 37 games with his lowest averages in years (21.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 3.1 assists). Plus, at 34 years old, Leonard is only going to decline as time goes on.
With another two years and $130 million on his contract, Leonard coming off the books wouldn’t be the worst thing for the Clippers. It would free up cap space and allow the team to reset its roster with a clean slate.
Of course, the NBA could also take the Clippers’ draft picks, but their draft stockpile is already nearly empty. With just two first-round picks well into the 2030s, the Clippers could have years to recover before that draft anyway, and they might be in a position to compete by then.
In the end, it’s undeniable that this scandal could end up being terrible for the Clippers, and any potential penalties would do some damage. But in the case of Steve Ballmer, it wouldn’t have a major impact unless he was temporarily banned from the arena or somehow forced to sell. He’s arguably the most powerful owner in the NBA right now, and his pockets run deep.
If the NBA does find concrete evidence against the Clippers, the next step will be figuring out how to respond, and that’s much easier said than done. If Adam Silver and the league want this punishment to stick, it can’t just be another fine. With Ballmer, it will have to be personal.
