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By Sam Garcia
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As the NBA continues its investigation into Kawhi Leonard's allegedly fraudulent endorsement deal with Aspiration, Leonard has been connected to another undisclosed sponsorship deal with Daktronics, which is the company that manufactured the Intuit Dome’s Halo video screen.
Pablo Torre of the "Pablo Torre Finds Out" podcast reported that Leonard received millions from his deal with Daktronics.
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If Torre's reports about Leonard's fraudulent deals with Aspiration and Daktronics are true, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith says Leonard and Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer should be banned from the NBA for a year.
“The Clippers are in a world of trouble,” Smith said. “If it’s true, we are talking about banishment for Steve Ballmer for at least a year. It should be entertained that Kawhi Leonard should be banned for a year. He just took the money… to learn that you might have had another sponsorship deal worth millions of dollars? So you had not one but a couple of companies funneling money to you, to circumvent the salary cap…You can’t go for that.”
Smith Outlines How the NBA Should Punish the Clippers and Leonard
Smith said the NBA needs to punish the Clippers and Leonard in a way that ensures no other team or player will attempt to circumvent the salary cap in the future. He suggested punishments that would prevent the Clippers from becoming a contender in the near future.
“I'm talking about confiscation of draft picks. I'm talking about banishment for at least a year. I'm talking about sending a kind of message where no player nor any owner would even think about doing this again," Smith said.
The NBA's investigation is putting a hold on a trade that would send Leonard to the Toronto Raptors. NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the investigation needs to be completed before the start of the 2026-27 season.
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