The Los Angeles Clippers have been fined over $30 million and stripped of five draft picks after the NBA determined they circumvented the salary cap. Other teams, including the San Antonio Spurs, now have to exercise some caution.
On Wednesday, the NBA closed its investigation into Kawhi Leonard. The league found that the Los Angeles Clippers had funneled money to Aspiration, an environmental nonprofit, which then signed Leonard to a "no-show" endorsement deal.
As a result, Steve Ballmer has been suspended and fined $30 million, Dennis Robertson has been banned from the NBA, and the Clippers have been stripped of five first-round draft picks. Apparently, the NBA takes such matters very seriously.
As Spurs fans rejoice over the news, one expert seems to think that other teams could be implicated in similar shady dealings. San Antonio might have to tread carefully.
Do Spurs Endorsement Deals Cross the Line?
Aspiration paid Leonard $28 million over four years. During that time, Leonard never publicly promoted the company. No ads, no appearances, not even a social media post.
Leonard is far from the only NBA player to be overpaid for a brand deal, but he was the first to collect a million in exchange for nothing. The Spurs often feature their players in San Antonio-centric ads for H-E-B, a regional grocery store. In fact, being in an H-E-B commercial is a rite of passage.
"I'm really curious to see if this has ripple effects on the way that sponsorships happen," said Dave DuFour on The Athletic NBA Daily. "Nearly every team does this. H-E-B does this with the San Antonio Spurs."
To be clear: the H-E-B ads and the Aspiration deal are not even in the same ballpark. Do the Spurs help facilitate the deal between the player and the company? Sure! Would Victor Wembanyama ever appear in an H-E-B commercial without the Spurs? Never! Is he getting paid for those ads? Yes, he is. Unlike Leonard, though, he's fulfilling his side of the bargain. Plus, the money H-E-B pays players comes from their own bottom line, not from the pockets of the Spurs' ownership group.
Being an NBA player comes with certain perks. Personal marketability and a brand are two of the major ones, and almost every NBA player has appeared in an ad campaign at one point or another.
That's the difference between them and Leonard. They appeared in the ads. No other team or fanbase should really have anything to worry about.
