NBA says it looked at precedent before doling out Clippers’ penalties for cap circumvention

NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the league looked at precedent before taking away five first-round draft picks from the Los Angeles Clippers for circumventing salary cap rules, though he noted that the decision was difficult because of the impact it could have on the team’s fans.

Silver, speaking Tuesday at the end of a two-day Board of Governors meeting, pointed to how the Minnesota Timberwolves were once docked five picks for cap circumvention as the precedent used in this case. And while noting that he doesn’t believe the loss of picks will lead to what he called “permanent damage” to the Clippers, it is still a major setback.

“I think that’s, in some ways, the most difficult part of adjudicating these disputes,” Silver said. “While there have to be competitive consequences, in our view, if these rules are violated, we still want to be a 30-team league and we recognize that in some ways we’re unfortunately punishing the fans of that team as well.”

Those were Silver’s first public comments after the Clippers were found to have circumvented salary cap rules on Kawhi Leonard’s behalf – something the team vehemently denied during a yearlong investigation. The NBA hit the Clippers earlier this month with massive penalties as a result of that probe, suspending owner Steve Ballmer for one year, fining the team US$30-million and forcing it to forfeit five first-round draft picks, among other sanctions.

The trade sending Leonard back to Toronto was finally completed Monday after the Raptors and Clippers got the customary league approval required for such deals. And Ballmer, earlier this week, said he would accept the penalties and that the fine has already been paid.

The Clippers were not represented at the board meeting, Silver said, since the team remains in the process of finding an interim governor.