Silver: Kawhi probe must end before season starts

Ben GolliverJul 15, 2026, 12:56 AM ET

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Ben Golliver is a senior NBA writer who joined ESPN in May 2026.

Prior to joining ESPN, Golliver covered the NBA on a national level since 2010 for The Washington Post, Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports. He is the author of Bubbleball, an account of his 93-day stay at the NBA's "Bubble" in Disney World during the coronavirus pandemic. He is based in Los Angeles.

LAS VEGAS -- NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Tuesday he remains "hopeful" the investigation into Kawhi Leonard and the LA Clippers for alleged salary cap circumvention will conclude "this summer," adding that the league was not responsible for holding up a reported trade that would have sent the seven-time All-Star forward to the Toronto Raptors.

"This [investigation] needs to be wrapped up before the beginning of next season," Silver said while addressing reporters after a meeting of the NBA's board of governors. "It's going on longer than I would have hoped, there's no question about that."

Silver said that the league's general counsel continues to receive weekly updates about the investigation from the Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz law firm, but that he is not yet aware of the firm's conclusions because its "report is not done."

The NBA instructed the law firm in September to investigate allegations that the Clippers funneled money to Leonard through his $28 million endorsement deal with now-bankrupt green banking company Aspiration, which also had a $300 million, 23-year endorsement deal with the team. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, who invested $60 million in Aspiration, has denied he had knowledge of Leonard's deal.

Ballmer has previously sat for an interview with the Wachtell lawyers, and the Clippers owner met with them again last week in New York City in what sources with knowledge of the matter said was likely one of the final steps of the investigation.

Silver attributed the length of the investigation to legal complications, including "dealing with bankruptcy courts and reluctant witnesses," and acknowledged the "frustration" felt by fans who want the matter to be resolved. Those frustrations deepened when the Clippers and Raptors issued statements on July 9 stating that a reported trade that would have sent Leonard to Toronto for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, unprotected first-round draft picks in 2031 and 2033, a 2027 first-round pick swap and two second-round picks was on hold until the NBA's investigation was completed.

The trade was reportedly agreed to on June 30. The Clippers said in a statement last week that the trade "can only be finalized if the Raptors' ownership group assumes the risk of penalties related to Kawhi's contract that could theoretically result from the ongoing investigation." The Raptors said in a statement that they "remain eager to bring Kawhi back to Toronto" but will wait until the investigation is over to proceed.

If the investigation concludes that Leonard broke the league's salary cap rules, the NBA could void his contract or suspend him for part or all of next season.

"The league did not pause the trade," Silver said. "The parties to the trade made a decision not to go forward given that the investigation remained open. Any possible impact on Kawhi or his contract was yet to be known. They chose not to live with that uncertainty. That was well known before the trade was proposed.

"I don't think there's any reason for people to believe that the status of Kawhi Leonard would change merely because he was traded."

Silver declined to provide details on how or when teams such as the Raptors were informed about the associated risks of acquiring him. A source with direct knowledge of the situation said the NBA did not communicate with the Clippers in advance about the matter because they never requested guidance from the league office.

"Questions were asked [by teams interested in acquiring Leonard] and answered quickly by the league office," Silver said. "I don't think any of this information should have been a surprise to anyone involved who thought about trading for him or were part of those discussions."

Silver stands by second apron

National Basketball Players Association executive director David Kelly said Friday that the NBA's "second apron" penalties and restrictions on the league's highest-spending teams must be "softened" or removed because they "decimate teams."

The Boston Celtics cited the second apron as a key factor in their decision to trade 2024 Finals MVP Jaylen Brown. The New York Knicks also referenced second apron penalties before watching back-up center Mitchell Robinson depart in free agency.

Kelly and NBPA president Fred VanVleet argued that a "consensus" opposing the second apron rules has built among players and fans, as well as some agents and team executives. Silver said that the second apron rules could be the subject of negotiation during the next round of labor talks, but he made it clear that he felt the system was "working incredibly well."

"The purpose of the system is ultimately to create competition throughout the league," he said, noting that the 2026 NBA Finals featured the large-market Knicks and the small-market San Antonio Spurs. "One of the things we were hoping to accomplish in this latest collective bargaining agreement was to dispel this notion that only certain markets were in a position to truly compete."

The latest on expansion

The NBA's Board of Governors heard presentations this week about expansion after it voted in March to explore the possibility of adding teams in Las Vegas and Seattle. Silver did not provide any significant updates on the issue, though he did say "multiple very serious groups" in Las Vegas "are in the process of presenting plans to our bankers."

Those plans include the makeup of potential ownership groups and arena concepts.

"It's music to my ears," Silver said. "We've got a ways to go still in terms of those discussions with interested parties, but I'm optimistic about the future here."

ESPN's Shams Charania reported in March that the NBA is targeting the 2028-29 season for the two new teams to start playing. Silver said Tuesday he believes the ownership selection process was "very much on track" to conclude by "year end."

Micky Arison named B.O.G. Chairman

The NBA's Board of Governors elected Miami Heat owner Micky Arison as its next Chairman. Arison, the head of Carnival Cruise Lines, will succeed Larry Tanenbaum of the Toronto Raptors in September. Tanenbaum had served as the Chairman of the Board of Governors since 2017.

ESPN's Baxter Holmes and Shams Charania contributed to this report.