NBA Suspends Clippers Owner Ballmer After Leonard Salary Probe

The NBA suspended Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer for one year and stripped the team of five first-round draft picks after determining the Clippers had circumvented salary cap rules through sponsorship agreements between outside companies and player Kawhi Leonard. The league's investigation found the team facilitated these arrangements as part of a scheme to work around financial regulations. Ballmer's suspension and the draft pick forfeiture represent the NBA's penalty for the salary cap violation.

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