I’ve been a basketball fan for basically my entire life. I watch at least 85% of the games each season, and with the amount that I’ve studied this sport, you would probably believe I play it actively. And with that being said, I can honestly say I’ve never seen an NBA franchise so screwed and left in ruins like this; it honestly baffles me just thinking about how that could even happen to this extent.
The Los Angeles Clippers, since they rebranded and moved back in 1984, have been the poverty franchise little brother to the Los Angeles Lakers. And the 2020s as a year have done nothing but punish their fans more and more. After signing NBA Superstar Kawhi Leonard and trading for NBA Superstar Paul George for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and 6 years’ worth of draft capital, it started to look up for the Clippers for once.
Then the Clippers’ 19-20 season would end after blowing a 3-1 lead to the Denver Nuggets. 20-21 season ended with their greatest franchise player getting his revenge game after Kawhi Leonard tore his ACL. 21-22 season ended with Paul George missing the playoffs due to getting COVID-19, 22-23 season ended after Kawhi Leonard tore his meniscus after just two playoff games, 23-24’ Kawhi Leonard injured his knee missing the playoffs, 24-25’ loses in game 7 to the denver nuggets(again), and the 25-26’ season ended with not even making the Clippers not even making playoffs.
Now you probably read that misery LA Clippers fans had to deal with and were shocked that a team can go through so much turmoil in just a few years. But now, the offseason of the 26-27 NBA season has been the worst yet. Following the decision to trade Kawhi Leonard away to begin to rebuild the franchise again, the trade was paused by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. This was due to an in-league investigation that was being conducted on the Clippers, in which they were found guilty of setting up four separate side deals and off-court revenue streams via outside companies to boost Kawhi Leonard’s income improperly(contract fraud).
So now, following being found guilty, the punishments were given out as follows: The Clippers were fined $30 million and stripped of five consecutive first-round draft picks (2029, 2030, 2031, 2032, and 2033), meaning they are rebuilding without having a future to draft for. Owner Steve Ballmer was suspended from all league and team activities for one year. President of business operations Gillian Zucker received a one-year suspension without pay, and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank was suspended for six months without pay. Kawhi Leonard was fined $700,000 for lapses in judgment, and his former business representative and uncle, Dennis Robertson, has been banned from the NBA for five years.
And if it couldn’t get worse, now the Department of Justice is launching their own investigation against Steve Ballmer, which could lead to even more punishments for the LA Clippers, including extensive jail time for Steve Ballmer.
This altogether has left Clipper fans and NBA fans stunned and shocked, especially with other teams like the Milwaukee Bucks being investigated next for possible contract fraud, leaving teams with participation in this fraud left in impossible predicaments to crawl out of for years to come.
