Siegel: The league must heavily punish the Clippers, otherwise it could trigger a “doomsday scenario” - NBA News

Sept. 3 - ClutchPoints reporter Brett Siegel said that as early as during the Las Vegas Summer League, people within the league and other teams had widely expected the Los Angeles Clippers could face severe punishment. Several personnel from rival teams told ClutchPoints in July that some NBA owners were even pressuring the league, hoping the NBA would use Steve Ballmer and the Clippers as an example to deter others.

Siegel pointed out that from the NBA's own perspective, if the investigation ultimately determines that salary cap circumvention did occur, the league cannot allow the Clippers to escape easily. Otherwise, it would send a dangerous signal to the other teams: that even if rules are violated, teams may have a chance to get away with it as long as the punishment is not severe enough.

A league executive described such a situation as a “doomsday scenario.” If one team can circumvent the salary cap through similar methods without paying a heavy price, the other 29 teams could also begin to follow suit, which is exactly the situation the NBA does not want to see.

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