The NBA investigation of Steve Ballmer, the Clippers is about to end with Sanberg’s sentence
The sentencing of Aspiration founder Joseph Sanberg to 14 years in state prison on Monday brings the NBA a step closer to concluding its nine-month investigation into allegations that the Clippers ran out of cash.
Sanberg pleaded guilty in October to charges of conspiring to defraud investors of $248 million by portraying the defunct Aspiration as a “socially responsible and sustainable banking and investment products” company.
The NBA declined to comment on the status of the investigation, which focuses on the $60 million invested in Aspiration by Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and the $28-million contract Clippers star Kawhi Leonard signed with Aspiration to endorse marketing work he did not do.
Players are allowed to have separate endorsements and other business deals, but the question is whether the Clippers were involved in arranging a side deal beyond presenting Aspiration managers to Leonard. Doing so would be a violation of Article 13 of the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement, which is punishable by a $4.5-million fine, the loss of a first-round draft pick and the voiding of Leonard’s contract.
The NBA draft takes place June 23-24 and the Clippers have three picks, including the fifth overall pick. The league is not expected to release its findings until after the NBA Finals, which begin Wednesday between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs.
Clippers officials have not commented on the investigation. But Leonard, who has one year left on a three-year, $149.5 million contract that will pay him $50.3 million next season, told The Athletic after the Clippers’ April 15 postseason game that “I think we’re going to go public. I’m not pushing it.”
Additionally, among the few public comments about the investigation were letters sent to federal court judge Stephen V. Wilson before Sanberg’s sentencing by Ballmer and the law firm conducting the investigation on behalf of the NBA.
A letter from Dave Anders of Wachtell Lipton said Sanberg provided documents and information helpful to the NBA’s investigation during two in-person interviews.
Anders wrote: “In all our dealings with Mr. “The cooperation of Mr. Sanberg has greatly aided our investigation, including our ability to develop a more comprehensive understanding of key events.”
Ballmer responded by calling for Wilson to receive a stiffer sentence in a five-page Victim Impact statement posted on social media by his attorney, David N. Kelley.
“Sanberg continues to exploit his fraud against Mr. Ballmer to his advantage, providing information to the NBA in order to obtain a subpoena sent by the organization on his behalf,” Kelley wrote. “The credibility of Sanberg’s information is suspected of having pleaded guilty to fraud, and the government has ruled that he is dishonest.”
Before handing down the sentence, Wilson made it clear that Sanberg’s credibility was questionable.
“He presents himself as a well-to-do person who was in the business of helping the world, but he personally benefited from his fraud,” said Wilson, later adding, “I would put the level of his fraud high.”
Ballmer, a former longtime Microsoft CEO who has owned the Clippers since 2014, accused Sanberg of targeting him for his known interest in environmental sustainability and exaggerating their relationship to convince others to invest in a fake company. He said he only met Sanberg once.
Ballmer invested $50 million in Aspiration in September 2021. A month later, the Clippers announced a $300 million sponsorship deal with the company. Ballmer almost gave Aspiration the naming rights to the group’s new $2 billion property, but chose financial services firm Intuit instead. Ballmer committed an additional $10 million to Aspiration on March 9, 2023.
Ballmer was added in November as a defendant in a civil lawsuit against Sanberg and several others associated with Aspiration. Ballmer and other defendants are accused by 11 investors in Aspiration of fraud and aiding and abetting the fraud, and the plaintiffs are seeking at least $50 million in damages.
Kelly argued that Ballmer was added as a defendant because of “visibility and resources,” and portrayed the owner of the Clippers as a victim, saying “Mr. Ballmer’s loss is not measured solely, or primarily, on the balance sheet. It is measured in reputational damage that will take years to repair, and the cumulative effect intended for future good.”
The only public comment about NBA Commissioner Adam Silver’s investigation came during All-Star Weekend in February at the Intuit Dome when he described the matter as “very complicated.”
“He has a bankrupt company, he has thousands of documents, many witnesses that should have been interviewed,” said Silver.
The investigation was sparked by reports from podcast host Pablo Torre that Leonard’s sponsorship deal with Aspiration was over the salary cap. Torre and the crew of “Pablo Torre Finds Out” won a Pulitzer Prize for Audio Reporting for their efforts.
