Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers are facing some serious allegations after a bombshell new report surfaced on Wednesday, and many fans were quick to make the same joke about the scandal.
Pablo Torre shared some new investigative reporting on Wednesday that appears to show a link between Leonard and a tree-planting company called Aspiration — which received hundreds of million in funding from Clippers owner Steve Ballmer — that filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. Torre uncovered documents that show that Leonard had a $28 million endorsement deal with Aspiration but never once publicly acknowledged the partnership or took part in any type of marketing.
Torre spoke with one former Aspiration employee who said he or she was told the deal with Leonard was “essentially to circumvent the salary cap” with the Clippers. You can read more details here.
As Torre put it, the $28 million endorsement deal was more or less a “no-show job” for Leonard. Fans joked that Leonard’s entire career with the Clippers has been a “no-show job.”
Isn’t a “no-show job” what he has with the clippers?
— NFToly (@SolNFTs) September 3, 2025
LMAO Steve Ballmer thought he’s sleek af
— JBond (@jbondwagon) September 3, 2025
In other hand, “no-show job” and Kawhi fits perfectly like a glove 😆
No-show endorsement deal for a no-show player. Makes sense. Insanely corrupt but makes sense.
— Florida Dad Reborn (@FLDadReborn) September 3, 2025
Funny, because Kawhi’s contract with the Clippers is already a no show job
— All Rice (@thats_bb_suzyn) September 3, 2025
Impressive to have two jobs that pay so well that don’t require you to show up regularly
— Todd Fuhrman (@ToddFuhrman) September 3, 2025
How is this any different than the no show job he does now as an NBA player for the Clippers?
— The One Memorabilia Group (@1of1MemGroup) September 3, 2025
Leonard has battled numerous injuries since he signed a three-year deal with the Clippers in 2019. He has become the face of the unpopular “load management” movement in the NBA. Leonard played in just 37 games last year and has missed 144 regular-season games across five seasons in L.A.
The Clippers have been to the Western Conference Finals once since signing Leonard. They lost in the first round of the playoffs the past three seasons.
When Leonard signed with L.A., the NBA looked into claims that Leonard’s camp had made illegal requests to some teams while weighing options in free agency. Now, the NBA has a potentially bigger scandal to investigate.
