Comments on: Clippers Hammered by NBA for Kawhi Leonard Cap Circumvention

By: chogokin

chogokin — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 04:35:00 +0000

I ain’t defending Ballmer. He has completely destroyed any goodwill I had for him after he took over from Sterling thanks to this idiocy. We’re screwed for like a decade now, and even though I think this punishment is heavy handed, I get it – the league wants to set an example, and the Clippers under Ballmer were at best grossly negligent.

Just providing some context in terms of ALL owners not giving af about the fans other than as a source of revenue.

By: Based Freestyle

Based Freestyle — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 04:12:01 +0000

Sure, but we don’t have to defend him when it’s obvious he doesn’t really give a crap about us at the end of the day.

By: World B. We

World B. We — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:39:23 +0000

Yeah that’s the other part I forgot. Don’t get too drunk! Ballmer isn’t worth the hangover.

By: mlslaw1

mlslaw1 — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:37:03 +0000

That's what I call perspective! Raising my glass to you, senor.

By: World B. We

World B. We — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:34:06 +0000

Hi everyone. Been a fan since ‘04. I don’t know if anyone else has this identity problem but I used to, and I just want to say, the Clippers franchise being an excrement throwing clown show does not make you a bad person.
If anything your loyalty, perseverance and illogical optimism in the face of unimaginable adversity are rare and admirable qualities.
In the end…this really is just a game. It’s entertainment. Constructed by the imaginations of mortal men.
Don’t let this crap bleed into your work or relationships.
As the Irish say, you are standing on the right side of the ground.
Air to breath. Water. Food. Physical intimacy. A roof over your head. Some semblance of security. This is the way.
This sports stuff? It’s just extra queso on the taco. A little falls out of the tortilla it’s not the end of the world.

What’s beautiful to me is the community of sport. And that’s what this site is. Been absorbing your guys observations since the clipsnation.com days. Can’t blame anyone for leaving, but if you don’t, I’ll be reading.

By: mlslaw1

mlslaw1 — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:34:01 +0000

Interested in the other half of your take on the matter, my friend.

By: osamu6238

osamu6238 — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:31:29 +0000

I was down bad for like 3 hours, but have since decided to let this play out a while longer before I fully commit to being depressed. It’s been a year long process, and jumping ship based on this punishment feels like I would just be giving up.

Primary to this punishment feels like the lawfirm is saying that any introduction to sponsors is TECHNICALLY violation of the salary cap rules. That seems absolutely insane as it is pretty clear that this has been common practice for generations. While always a bad looks, I’ve always said that I didn’t think Kawhi/Clippers did anything that wasn’t relatively common practice in NBA circles.

I still have about half of this legal report to read through, so maybe they’ll convince me otherwise. Just feels like this punishment is at best making an example of the Clippers, or at worse, something personal due to them leaking that lack of evidence report by ESPN.

By: chogokin

chogokin — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:26:12 +0000

To be fair, Ballmer caring about his own ego more than the fans is par for the course for owners of pro sports teams. Just look at what this team was under Sterling, or look at the slow motion train wreck that is the current ownership of the Blazers. Billionaires don’t become billionaires by caring about the public, and they sure as hell don’t buy pro sports teams because they care about the public. I’m not saying Ballmer’s a devil or a saint, but let’s be real – owning a pro sports team is very much a status symbol for the ultra rich, so ego is inherently a big part of that.

By: mlslaw1

mlslaw1 — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:20:15 +0000

Well, when you step back and look at it from the player’s perspective, they kinda gotta love Balmer for figuriing out ways—even breaking the rules ways–to make them and their families rich asses. I think I heard Richard Jefferson say, back when this started, that he wishes he were in Kawhi’s shoes (in terms of those rich do nothing side deals). Players may not say it out loud, but I think they like it. The Sterling comparison is a super low bar, agree, but Balmer making guys rich is off the charts different from Sterling.

By: Based Freestyle

Based Freestyle — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 03:09:25 +0000

DTS is the lowest possible bar for an owner. 99.9% of owners in sports history have been better than him, and that list includes plenty of owners who were still awful. Which is to say, it doesn’t take much for Ballmer to be better than him, so it’s not much of an accomplishment.

Bringing up Sterling also feels like a deflection at this point when he’s over a decade in the rear view and Ballmer just got the franchise smacked back down to the Sports Arena days for the next decade minimum. How about they both suck and it’s time to give someone else a try?