TITLE: Ballmer Moves to Toss Fraud Lawsuit Tied to Kawhi Leonard Payments
SLUG: ballmer-seeks-dismissal-fraud-suit-over-leonard-pay
CONTENT:
Attorneys for LA Clippers owner Steve Ballmer have asked a Los Angeles court to throw out a fraud lawsuit that accuses him of channeling money to forward Kawhi Leonard through the now-bankrupt green banking firm Aspiration.
In a motion filed Monday, Ballmer’s legal team called the claims “sensational” and “patently false,” arguing that the amended complaint lacks evidence of any agreement to sidestep the NBA salary cap. The filing responds to a suit brought by 11 Aspiration investors on July 9, 2025, after the company filed for bankruptcy four months earlier. Ballmer was added as a defendant on Nov. 3, 2025, following podcasts by journalist Pablo Torre suggesting his investment was intended to boost Leonard’s compensation.
“Plaintiffs would not have invested and/or kept their investment in Aspiration if Ballmer and Sanberg had disclosed the true nature of Ballmer’s investment,” the amended complaint states. Ballmer’s attorneys counter that the investors are pursuing “anybody with the means to pay” and claim the allegations mimic Torre’s commentary.
Plaintiffs’ counsel Skip Miller said the lawsuit speaks for itself and will be argued in court, not the media. Ballmer and the Clippers have maintained they did not violate league rules and say they are cooperating with an ongoing NBA investigation.
In September 2021, the Clippers and Aspiration announced a $300 million, 23-year sponsorship covering arena signage and a jersey patch, while Ballmer personally invested $50 million in the firm the same month. Aspiration later signed Leonard to a four-year, $28 million endorsement deal in April 2022. An unnamed former Aspiration employee told Torre the arrangement was designed “to circumvent the salary cap.”
Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg pleaded guilty in October 2025 to two counts of wire fraud, each carrying up to 20 years in prison; sentencing is set for Feb. 23, 2026, in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. Ballmer’s filing portrays him as another victim who lost his investment.
The court will hear Ballmer’s dismissal request on March 9, 2026, at Los Angeles County Superior Court.
Source: ESPN
