ESPN’s revelation that the Los Angeles Clippers and Kawhi Leonard will walk away without punishment from their recent cap-circumvention investigation has been denied by the NBA.
The NBA started its investigation into the Clippers and Kawhi for alleged cap circumvention 11 months ago, after journalist Pablo Torre revealed Kawhi’s secret sponsorship deal with Aspiration.
With the world anxious for a resolution, ESPN shared a comprehensive report revealing that the Clippers are expected to receive no punishment. However, the NBA does not agree with that assertion.
NBA issues statement to deny ESPN’s report on Clippers, Kawhi Leonard investigation
The NBA’s Chief Communications Officer Mike Bass issued a statement on behalf of the league, categorically saying that ESPN’s article has ‘numerous and significant’ inaccuracies.
“ESPN’s article regarding the LA Clippers investigation – for which the NBA declined to cooperate – contains numerous and significant inaccuracies. The results in this matter will be made clear once the investigation is concluded.”
Bass’s reiteration highlights that the investigation is yet to conclude and that ESPN’s report may have jumped the gun on the status of the situation currently.
However, the reporters behind the story, like Ramona Shelburne and Baxter Holmes, have really strong credentials and are unlikely to share ‘numerous inaccuracies’ in a report of this magnitude.
Their story alleges that the NBA found no proof of cap-circumvention directly from the Clippers, with the Clippers promptly releasing a statement in which they claim the organisation and Steve Ballmer didn’t act improperly and only made introductions for Leonard with sponsors.
If the NBA’s eventual verdict matches what ESPN’s report stated, then we know that the initial report was probably accurate. But with the NBA publicly refuting these claims, there is a chance that the Clippers are punished for this.
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