Report: The NBA has approved Aspiration’s endorsement deal with the Clippers
The NBA “reviewed and approved” the $300 million endorsement deal between Aspiration and the Los Angeles Clippers more than eight months before the company entered into a separate endorsement deal with Kawhi Leonard. The NBA is now investigating this latest deal amid allegations of salary cap evasion.
The latest report on the case comes via ESPN’s Baxter Holmes and Bobby Marks and delves into the initial sponsorship deal between the Clippers and Aspiration, a “green bank” company that team owner Steve Ballmer invested $50 million in around the same time. From the report:
Two sources with direct knowledge of the deal said the Clippers submitted the 23-year deal to the NBA for approval before it was announced in September 2021, as required by league rules because it contained a jersey patch, the sources said…
“Teams vet their own sponsorship partners and negotiate their own sponsorship deals,” NBA spokesman Mike Bass said in a statement to ESPN. “Given the inclusion of the jersey patch on player jerseys and its level of exposure during game telecasts, the league reviews and approves jersey patch agreements pursuant to league rules that are intended to avoid potential branding issues or conflicts with league partnerships.”
The other thing the league looks at is the viability of the company: Can it live up to the financial obligations of the sponsorship deal? On paper in 2021, Aspiration looked like it could, which is why Ballmer and other billionaires were investing in it. Within a couple of years, Aspiration had fallen apart, its endorsement deal with the Clippers had been cancelled, the company had declared bankruptcy, and its CEO Joe Sanberg had pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud.
This is separate from the allegation that Ballmer and the Clippers used Aspiration and its $48 million endorsement deal with Leonard to get around the salary cap and get more money from the Clippers star, an allegation investigated and made by the Pablo Torre finds out podcasts. The NBA hired law firm Wachtell Lipton, Rosen & Katz to investigate claims that it was a “no show” endorsement deal – there is no public evidence at this point that Leonard performed any work, made appearances or made social media posts for Aspiration – used to circumvent the NBA’s salary cap and get more money out of Leonard (and his family, including his uncle and business manager Dennis Rodgers). There’s plenty of circumstantial evidence for the Clippers to explain, including Clippers minority owner Dennis Wong investing $2 million in Aspiration in late 2023 — when it was clear the company was failing — and Leonard receiving a $1.75 million endorsement check days later.
Despite all this, the Clippers and Leonard have vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
“I mean, the NBA is going to do their job. None of us committed any wrongdoing,” Leonard said at the Clippers’ media day. “And yeah, I mean, that’s it. We invite investigation… I understand the entire contract and the services I was supposed to provide. Like I said, I’m not about the conspiracies or the clickbait analysts or the journalism that’s going on.”
That same day, Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said, “We’re very, very confident that we’re on the right side.”
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the burden of proof is on the NBA to prove something was wrong. The league’s investigation is expected to last months, most likely into 2026 (the ESPN report suggests it could last until after the 2026 NBA playoffs). Whatever the investigation finds, Silver must submit it to an independent arbitrator — agreed upon by the NBA and the players’ union — who will determine the next steps and whether Silver will have enough to punish the Clippers or not.
Until then, expect the information leaks to continue.