NBA: Leonard Personally Involved in Aspiration Contract Talks but Did Not Know It Was for Salary Cap Circumvention

Sept. 3 — According to an NBA official investigation report cited by Vorkunov, Kawhi Leonard said he did not know that any endorsement agreements he signed were intended to help the Los Angeles Clippers circumvent the salary cap. However, the NBA ultimately fined him $700,000 and determined that he violated the league's salary cap circumvention rules by pressuring the Clippers through his uncle Dennis Robertson and seeking off-court income.

It is worth noting that the NBA investigation report also specifically mentioned an instance in which Leonard personally participated in contract negotiations. During the Aspiration endorsement agreement, Leonard personally requested adjustments to the payment arrangements for different types of compensation in the agreement.

Therefore, the report did not determine that Leonard knew these endorsement transactions were intended to circumvent the salary cap, but it also pointed out that he was not completely uninvolved in the specific handling of related business agreements; at least in the Aspiration contract, he directly participated in negotiations over some payment terms.

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