Steve Ballmer's Statement to Fans Leaves Implications on Kawhi Leonard Trade

The drama truly seems like it’s never going to end in this NBA offseason when discussing the scandal involving the Los Angeles Clippers and seven-time All-Star Kawhi Leonard. Fans can’t stop talking about the aggressive punishments given to LA coupled with the mere slap on the wrist given to Leonard. Even comedians are taking shots at the two-time Finals MVP, showing how significant of a deal this has become beyond just the NBA. 

While the investigation began over a year ago, it gained more relevance this offseason once the Clippers engaged in a trade to send the two-time DPOY to the Toronto Raptors for two-time All-Star Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, and significant draft compensation. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver made it clear to Raptors general manager Bobby Webster that Leonard would still be punished if convicted of salary cap circumvention, regardless of whether he was a member of the Clippers or Raptors. As a result, the trade has been stalled ever since, and with training camp just a couple of weeks away, time is ticking for the transaction to be completed. 

With the release of the specific punishments dealt both to the Clippers organization and Leonard, respectively, it became widely expected that the trade would go through swiftly. It’s now been almost two weeks since this initial thought, and The SteinLine’s Jake Fischer reported that the stalling was likely due to LA needing to assign a new head of basketball operations during Lawrence Frank’s six-month suspension. This was the smaller story of what was being reported: Clippers owner Steve Ballmer was reportedly ready to go to court against the NBA, and potentially bring other franchises down with him if he knew they were also guilty (via PBD Podcast). 

Instead, the second CEO of Microsoft finally released a statement to the Clippers fanbase, announcing his acceptance of all penalties.

“I want to apologize to our fans, employees, and my fellow NBA team owners for the distraction and distress this matter has caused, for which I accept responsibility as principal owner,” said Ballmer. “[The Clippers] have communicated to the NBA that we are complying with the penalties assessed by the league, have paid the fine, and are moving forward.” 

It would be easy to assume that this is great news for the Raptors, who should be just one step away from having another conversation about the deal with the Clippers management. Instead, Fischer commented on Ballmer’s statement, denying any hope of efficiency in completing the trade. 

“I would not read Steve Ballmer accepting the NBA’s investigation findings and penalties as any indicator the trade of Kawhi Leonard to the Raptors will be completed imminently,” said Fischer. 

Naturally, it should have been expected that this was a roadblock to establishing the new change in leadership, given Ballmer publicly denied that the findings were consistent with the truth. That process could have taken even longer than the NBA’s investigation, so ultimately the decision to accept the penalties was in the best interest of both him and the league. While Fischer is clear that the trade will continue to wait until the Clippers figure out who will lead their franchise over the next six months, the regular season is right around the corner, so one would hope LA makes its decision soon, with the trade’s completion to follow shortly thereafter.