As the NBA’s probe into Kawhi Leonard and his connections to Aspiration and the Clippers continues, a new layer has emerged.
Leonard’s camp reportedly asked the Raptors for benefits in 2019 that “line up almost perfectly” with the Clippers controversy now under investigation, according to Bruce Arthur of the Toronto Star.
Arthur reported that Dennis Robertson, Leonard’s uncle and representative, presented the Raptors with a laundry list of requests during free agency after Leonard delivered Toronto its first NBA championship.
“According to those sources, who were granted anonymity in order to speak freely about the negotiations, Robertson’s list was long, and absurd,” Arthur said. ” It included a trade for George, which featured an exorbitant price tag. It included a slice of ownership of the Toronto Maple Leafs, which Robertson was told was impossible.”
But Arthur added that two specific asks stand out when compared to the Clippers’ Aspiration deal.
“One, Robertson asked for ownership stakes in outside companies: not just the Leafs, which he seemed to believe was separate, but with other companies with whom MLSE had a relationship. And two, the Raptors were told they needed to match at least $10 million per year in extra sponsorship income. Teams are allowed to introduce players to team sponsors; teams cannot negotiate deals, and MLSE was aware of that fact.”
The requests reportedly went beyond simple endorsements:
“As one source put it, when told about all the corporate sponsors in Toronto who would be happy to have Leonard as a pitchman, his camp said, ‘We don’t want to do anything.’ Raptors representatives said any sponsor would want to shoot ads or arrange appearances; Robertson reiterated Leonard didn’t want to do anything for the money.”
That exchange, Arthur wrote, was when the Raptors realized Leonard’s team was asking for “no-show jobs, and arrange no-investment investments. MLSE rejected both proposals.”
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