Los Angeles Clippers’ salary cap controversy involving Kawhi Leonard mirrors Joe Smith's Minnesota Timberwolves scandal

If the recent accusations against the Los Angeles Clippers are accurate, then they are going to be in a lot of trouble. According to the shocking information released on Wednesday by investigative journalist Pablo Torre, the franchise has allegedly been participating in a shell corporation plan that has been paying their star player, Kawhi Leonard, under the table and below the salary cap for years.

They got him to sign a $28 million endorsement contract for a "no-show job" with a fake tree-planting business that team owner Steve Ballmer was allegedly funding. Now, this incident brings back memories from the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Joe Smith trade.

Alleged secret payments to Kawhi Leonard put Los Angeles Clippers under scrutiny

It all started with Aspiration Partners, a technology and sustainable growth firm that arranged carbon emission credits for major corporations such as Microsoft and Meta. Aspiration was compelled to divulge its outstanding debt in their bankruptcy filings, including a $7 million payment to "KL2 Aspire LLC," a company whose manager is identified as Kawhi Leonard. At this point, Torre started looking into the payments and posing inquiries about the business. He got documents of the agreement between Aspiration Partners and Kawhi Leonard. The documents specified that Aspiration allegedly paid Leonard a total of $28 million, planned in four annual payments of $7 million.

To persuade Kawhi Leonard to come to Los Angeles, they exchanged most of their draft capital. It is not until 2030 that the team fully owns their first-round pick. Additionally, the LA superstar was getting $28 million from a business that Clippers owner Steve Ballmer supported for doing nothing. It seems like a way to increase Kawhi's compensation without having to deal with NBA salary cap restrictions.

After this mess is cleaned up, the Clippers will probably suffer a similar fate to the Minnesota Timberwolves, as they have had similar luck. If the Clippers are found guilty of what Torre alleges, the league will probably punish them harshly, just as it did Minnesota.

Exploring the Joe Smith scandal and its impact on the Minnesota Timberwolves

In 1999-00, Joe Smith played for the Minnesota Timberwolves. In order to have wage cap flexibility, the organization paid him underhandedly for the three veteran minimum deals he signed, each worth less than $3 million. After everything came to light, the Wolves received a severe penalty from the NBA. The Wolves were forced to pay a $3.5 million fine, forfeit five first-round draft picks for the following five years, and have their owner and general manager suspended. This was for signing Smith to three short-term contracts before agreeing to give him a huge payout after securing his Bird Rights.

In an attempt to build around Kevin Garnett, Minnesota violated the regulations. With KG in the forefront, the Wolves never lived up to their full potential. They were ousted in the first round seven times, but they made the playoffs eight times in a row. Prior to Anthony Edwards' arrival, Minnesota qualified only once in 17 seasons and missed the playoffs for 13 consecutive years beginning in 2005. Also read: "I was super excited"- Terance Mann embraces new chapter with Brooklyn Nets after Los Angeles Clippers stints