Well, it finally happened: the NBA's long-awaited Kawhi Leonard investigation is over. It has been nearly a full year since Pablo Torre first reported that Kawhi had a no-show endorsement deal with the fraudulent company Aspiration. The Los Angeles Clippers circumvented the salary cap by paying Kawhi under the table for this deal.
On Wednesday, the NBA announced that the Clippers will be stripped of five first-round picks in 2029, 2030, 2031, 2032, and 2033. Furthermore, the Clippers were fined $30 million, and many key members of the organization, including owner Steve Ballmer, have been temporarily suspended.
Long-term, though, losing five first-round picks is the key story. This is a punishment that the Minnesota Timberwolves are familiar with; back in 2000, the Timberwolves were stripped of five first-round picks after they circumvented the cap with Joe Smith. Granted, the Wolves did so in a different way, as they paid Smith three one-year deals, explicitly promising a bigger payday down the line.
It's also worth noting that the NBA returned two of the Timberwolves' picks. Regardless, given that both penalties cost the respective teams five first-round picks and the theme of cap circumvention, it's hard not to think of Joe Smith after hearing this news, especially if you are a longtime Wolves fan. Needless to say, losing such significant draft capital is a massive hindrance to team building.
It's brutally challenging to improve your team without draft capital
The Timberwolves' Smith mistake significantly limited their ability to build around Kevin Garnett. Ultimately, this led to KG being traded in 2007. Garnett and the Wolves made one conference finals run in 2004, but the era as a whole was disappointing. After this, they didn't return to the playoffs until 2018.
Maybe Glen Taylor and the Timberwolves' front office would have always failed to maximize the KG era. Regardless, not having extra draft capital limited their abilities on the trade front and in adding young talent around Garnett.
The Clippers being without future draft capital hurts them for a different reason. With a trade in place for Kawhi to go to the Toronto Raptors, they are primed to embrace a rebuild. Good luck doing so without your picks.
After this investigation, the Clippers only have a 2027 first-round pick swap (which is the second most favorable among three teams), the least favorable pick between them and Philadelphia in 2029, and the Raptors' picks in 2031 and 2033. That's it from now until 2033.
Keaton Wagler has a star upside, but he's a rookie, and maximizing a roster around him without picks would be extremely challenging. Plus, frankly, I don't think Darius Garland or Brandon Ingram, while talented, would return much on the open market. The point is that LA will likely be stuck in NBA purgatory for the foreseeable future.
Again, it was different circumstances, but the Timberwolves dealt with a similar situation 26 years ago, and unfortunately it took them a long time to recover.
Add us as a preferred source on Google