Overview

• Andrei Cherny said Leonard’s contract contained detailed obligations and a termination clause, adding he recalls no salary-cap discussions before he signed it in 2022 shortly before leaving the company.
• The NBA has engaged Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to investigate, and commissioner Adam Silver emphasized the league must prove actual impropriety rather than act on appearances, with no timetable set.
• Reporting shows Steve Ballmer invested $50 million in Aspiration in 2021 and about $10 million more in March 2023, the month a Leonard quarterly payment was due, while Ballmer denies any role and says he was duped.
• Internal records indicate Clippers limited partner Dennis J. Wong invested roughly $1.99 million shortly before a $1.75 million Aspiration payment to Leonard, and outlets have found no public evidence Leonard performed promotional work.
• Aspiration entered Chapter 11 in March and co-founder Joe Sanberg pleaded guilty to wire fraud; a statement attributed to three former executives said the Leonard deal bypassed normal review and was not in the company’s best interest.