As reported on the podcast “Pablo Torre Finds Out,” Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard is facing fresh allegations regarding an undisclosed multimillion-dollar sponsorship agreement with Daktronics, the company behind the Intuit Dome’s video board. Sources claim the deal functioned as an off-the-books pipeline to bypass the NBA salary cap.
The development complicates an ongoing league probe into potential salary circumvention involving former sponsor Aspiration. As a result, a proposed trade sending Leonard to the Toronto Raptors remains stalled while NBA investigators review the newly surfaced financial arrangements.
Confirming the story, Basketball Sphere published that “new allegations link Kawhi Leonard to a secret sponsorship with the Clippers’ scoreboard maker,” noting the league’s pause on trade transactions. The Japan Times further reported via Reuters that “the NBA is looking into whether the arrangement was 1000% a way to circumvent the salary cap”.
This investigation represents one of the most significant cap-circumvention inquiries in modern NBA history. Severe penalties, including heavy fines or forfeiture of draft picks, could follow if the league uncovers deliberate financial manipulation by the franchise.
Source: Basketball Sphere — https://basketballsphere.com/en/nba-morning-brief-kawhi-leonard-allegations/, August 7, 2026
Photo credit: LA Times
