Кавай Ленард сыграл в 2 из 15 матчей до получения 1,75 млн долларов от Aspiration и в 50 из 67 после
Согласно репортажу Пабло Торре, рекламный контракт Ленарда с обанкротившейся компанией Aspiration гарантировал ему 7 миллионов долларов в год с ежеквартальными выплатами по 1,75 миллиона. Но у Aspiration были финансовые трудности, и одна из запланированных выплат была задержана до 15 декабря 2022 года.
В недели, предшествовавшие выплате, Ленард почти не играл. Он вышел на площадку всего в 2 из первых 15 матчей «Клипперс», пропуская игры из-за затянувшихся проблем с травмами. Его статус часто указывался как day-to-day, а клуб давал расплывчатые объяснения.
Его досрочно сняли с игры против «Мемфиса» без внятных объяснений, из-за чего главный тренер Тайрон Лю выглядел сбитым с толку. В другой раз его не выпустили на матч из-за «ушиба лица», но после возвращении он не носил защитной маски и на нем не было видно следов серьезного удара.
После того как на счет Ленарда поступили 1,75 миллиона, ситуация изменилась. Он сыграл в 50 из следующих 67 игр «Клипперс».
Ранее сообщалось, что университетский сосед по комнате и деловой партнер Стива Балмера Деннис Вонг, владеющий миноритарной долей в «Клипперс» и занимающий позицию вице-председателя клуба, вложил в находящуюся на грани краха Aspiration 2 миллиона долларов, а через 9 дней компания заплатила Ленарду и в тот же день уволила значительную часть своих сотрудников.
Автор К. Ленард
August 12, 2014: Steve Ballmer officially becomes the governor of the Clippers
August 25, 2015: The Clippers were fined $250,000 for offering unauthorized business/investment opportunities during free agency for DeAndre Jordan
December 11, 2018: ESPN reports that the Clippers scouted "roughly 75 percent" of games Leonard played for the Raptors before free agency
May 31, 2019: Doc Rivers (who was then head coach of the Clippers) was fined $50,000 in May 2019 for tampering comments about Leonard
Summer 2019: Leonard’s uncle Dennis Robertson reportedly demanded Leonard receive an annual $10 million in "no-show" endorsement deals, per Toronto Star
After he won a championship and was named 2019 NBA Finals MVP for the second time in his career, Leonard was the biggest fish in basketball free agency. But in the process, Leonard’s camp reportedly made some bold requests.
July 9, 2019: Leonard officially signs with the Clippers as a free agent
A few days prior, the Clippers traded a major package (including future NBA MVP and NBA Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander) to Oklahoma City in exchange for Paul George.
July 23, 2019: ESPN reported there was "frustration" at the NBA’s Board of Governors meeting that family members of players were asking for benefits outside of the scope of the collective bargaining agreement
According to ESPN, some governors suggested that any family member negotiating on behalf of a player should have to become an NBPA-certified agent.
September 23, 2019: NBA’s Board of Governors approved higher fines for "unauthorized agreements" with the intention to avoid salary cap circumvention
December 3, 2019: The Athletic reported the Clippers were investigated to discover whether or not there were "improper requests" offered to Leonard during his free agency period
This investigation also looked into whether there was guaranteed off-court endorsement deals offered to Leonard. No evidence was found but the NBA would "re-open the investigation" if "any relevant evidence" surfaced.
December 19, 2020:Johnny Wilkes filed a lawsuit alleging he was owed $2.5 million if he helped convince Leonard to sign with the team in 2019
Wilkes claimed Ballmer would fund a "$100 million marketing campaign" for Leonard if he signed there. The NBA began a second the investigation into the Clippers, but no penalty was issued. The case was dismissed in 2022 before it reached trial.
August 12, 2021: Clippers announce a four-year, $176.3 million extension for Leonard
September 14, 2021: Ballmer reportedly invested $50 million in Aspiration
This gave him "less than 3 percent" ownership as they had raised over $600 million in funding. Ballmer told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne these people "committed fraud" and "conned" him.
September 27, 2021: Clippers announce long-term plans for more than $300 million partnership with Aspiration
This deal would include jersey sponsorship and at the Intuit Dome and was scheduled to span 23 years.
November 2021: According to Ballmer, early in this month is when the Clippers introduced Leonard to Aspiration
Ballmer told ESPN’s Shelburne that he did not know the terms of this deal with Leonard.
November 22, 2021: Leonard registered a company called “KL2 ASPIRE LLC” in California
Kawhi Leonard’s initials are "KL" and he wears No. 2 for the Clippers.
April 1, 2022: Leonard began a four-year, $28 million endorsement deal with Aspiration
The endorsement required nearly nothing from him, similar to what Roberson reportedly asked of the Raptors in 2019. Leonard also agreed to a side deal for $20 million in stock (which did not convey) from Aspiration co-founder Joe Sanberg, per Boston Sports Journal. At the time, this brought the total valuation of the endorsement up to $48 million.
July 6, 2022: Leonard received his first payment for $1.75 million, though it was later than expected
Leonard was expected to receive his payment four times per year, ending in March 2026. His first quarterly payment was due in June 2022 with the next due in September then December. There was no payment in September 2022, which reportedly upset Leonard’s uncle Dennis.
October 13, 2022: Andrei Churney, who signed the endorsement deal for Leonard, stepped down as CEO of Aspiration
December 6, 2022: Clippers minority owner and alternate governor Dennis J. Wong (Ballmer’s college roommate) invested $1.99 million in Aspiration for the first time while it was in peril
By this point, however, Aspiration was already running out of money and began its first of multiple rounds of significant layoffs. Payouts, including to Leonard, were otherwise paused. Employees at Aspiration told Torre that this was not a "rational" investment in a "broke" company but knew that Wong was affiliated with the Clippers.
December 15, 2022: Leonard received his second payment for $1.75 million
20 percent of the staff was let go from Aspiration on that same day.
June 2023: The endorsement deal with the Clippers ended early after the 2022-23 season due to breach of contract
January 2024: Leonard signed another contract extension with the Clippers
March 3, 2025: Aspiration’s Sandberg was arrested for conspiring to defraud an investment fund
March 15, 2025: Aspiration filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and KL2 Aspire LLC is listed as one of the creditors
August 21, 2025: Sanberg agreed to plead guilty for defrauding investors of over $248 million
Почему-то вспомнилась ситуация Кириленко и Прохорова сразу