A bombshell investigation by journalist Pablo Torre has cast a shadow over the Los Angeles Clippers and their star forward Kawhi Leonard, alleging that Leonard received $28 million through a “no-show job” endorsement deal with a now-bankrupt tree-planting company, Aspiration Inc., secretly funded by Clippers owner Steve Ballmer.
According to documents obtained by Torre and revealed on his Pablo Torre Finds Out podcast, Leonard signed the deal in 2022 through an entity called KL2 Aspire LLC, which he manages. The contract reportedly paid Leonard $7 million annually over four years, despite no evidence of him ever publicly endorsing or promoting the company.
Aspiration Inc., once marketed as a sustainability-focused startup, filed for bankruptcy in March 2025 after its co-founder Joe Sanberg was arrested on fraud charges. The company’s bankruptcy filings list KL2 Aspire LLC as a creditor, and insiders claim Leonard was its highest-paid “marketer”, despite never appearing in ads, interviews, or social media posts related to the brand.
One former employee told Torre,
“The single largest payment to an individual for marketing that Aspiration ever made has completely evaded all press… He didn’t have to do anything”.
The most explosive claim is that the deal was structured to circumvent the NBA’s salary cap. A clause in Leonard’s contract reportedly stated that the endorsement agreement would be terminated if he left the Clippers, suggesting a direct link between team affiliation and compensation.
NBA rules strictly prohibit teams or their affiliates from using third-party arrangements to pay players beyond their official contracts. If proven, this could constitute a serious violation, similar to the infamous Joe Smith case in 1999, which resulted in the Minnesota Timberwolves losing five first-round draft picks.
The Clippers have denied any wrongdoing. In a statement to Torre, the team said,
“Neither Mr. Ballmer nor the Clippers circumvented the salary cap or engaged in any misconduct related to Aspiration. Any contrary assertion is provably false”.
As the NBA reviews the allegations, the implications could be far-reaching. If the league finds evidence of cap circumvention, the Clippers could face fines, loss of draft picks, or other disciplinary action. For Leonard, whose career has already been marked by injury and load management scrutiny, this adds a new layer of controversy.
BREAKING: Kawhi Leonard allegedly signed a $28M “no-show job” endorsement deal with a fraudulent tree-planting company secretly funded by $50M from Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, per @PabloTorre
Sources say it was all “to circumvent the salary cap.”😳
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) September 3, 2025
