Ex-CEO Denies Kawhi Leonard’s “No-Show” Contract Amid NBA Probe
The NBA is digging into whether Clippers owner Steve Ballmer used endorsement deals to get around the salary cap, but the man who ran the company at the center of the story says Kawhi Leonard’s contract was legit.
Former Aspiration CEO Andrei Cherny pushed back Friday, saying Leonard’s 2022 sponsorship deal was not a no-show contract.
“The contract contained three pages of extensive obligations that Leonard had to perform,” Cherny wrote in a statement on X. “And if he didn’t meet them, Aspiration could terminate the contract.”
Here’s the backdrop: Aspiration signed Leonard to a four-year, $28 million deal. Around the same time, Ballmer invested millions into the company through his personal LLC, and the Clippers announced a massive $300 million partnership. Reports suggested the money was really a way to funnel extra cash to Kawhi outside of NBA rules — something the team strongly denies.
Cherny insists the deal was above board, saying he personally signed off on the contract before leaving the company in 2022. Still, the optics are wild: more Ballmer investments, more money flowing, and now an NBA investigation that has the whole league watching closely.
Adding fuel to the fire, Aspiration filed for bankruptcy this year, and its co-founder Joe Sanberg just pleaded guilty to more than $248 million in wire fraud.
Wait, there’s more fuel for the fire… Kawhi and the Clippers still have yet to play up to expectations. Might not be as important, but it definitely frustrates me as a sports fan.
