When the details of an unusual arrangement between a now-defunct sponsor of the Los Angeles Clippers and Kawhi Leonard were first revealed by journalist Pablo Torre almost a year ago, it seemed likely that the NBA would wrap up its investigation into potential salary-cap circumvention quickly.
The Clippers, after all, were hosting All-Star Weekend in February. Surely commissioner Adam Silver wouldn't want the specter of a possible cheating scandal involving one of the league's best players hanging over the festivities?
Not only was Silver apparently fine with that, he was also OK with the investigation continuing throughout the regular season and into the playoffs, which might have gotten terribly awkward had the Clippers gone deep. (They did him a favor by getting bounced from the play-in tournament.)
The investigation has since carried through the end of the Finals, the draft, and the busiest part of the NBA's offseason, which is when Leonard was traded to the Toronto Raptors. Or, sort-of traded. Mostly traded. Traded-ish.
Will Leonard's status still be uncertain when training camp opens? Maybe. And Silver seems OK with that, too.
It is a tremendous abdication of responsibility on the part of the commissioner.
The NBA, of course, is not technically handling the investigation; the league handed it off to a third party - the New York law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz - after Torre broke the story. This has been Silver's public cover in the many months since: Hey guys, it's not our investigation. We're waiting on it like everyone else.
Silver told a business audience in New York this week that there was no update since he last spoke about the Kawhi saga at Summer League. "These things take time," he said of the law-firm investigation. As a lawyer himself, he added, "I know how complex these things are."
The commissioner also reiterated past sentiments that he hopes the results will be known "this summer."
He also said this: "Would I like it to be concluded? Of course."
It's hard to be convinced by that statement considering the investigators are working at the NBA's behest. This isn't the same as when a politician is accused of criminal wrongdoing and the matter is referred to police investigators. In those instances, it's only fair that the investigators are given a wide berth and unlimited time, because political pressure shouldn't interfere with the justice system.
The NBA is under no such constraints. This is an internal matter, and treating the Clippers fairly also means giving equal consideration to the other 29 teams in the league. It was in their collective best interest for the law firm to conclude its investigation months ago. Silver could have given Wachtell Lipton a hard deadline - or at least a point at which he could have reviewed the firm's findings and then decided whether the probe should continue.
Instead, a season has come and gone, and the range of possible penalties against the Clippers runs from severe to none at all. Meanwhile, they drafted blue-chip prospect Keaton Wagler with the fifth overall draft pick, making excellent use of an asset that might have been lost to punishment had the NBA acted more quickly.
How will the teams that drafted just after the Clippers in June, like the Nets and Kings, feel if the Clippers are docked 2027 picks instead of 2026 picks? Not great, one would imagine.
It's notable that Silver's power in this matter is close to absolute. The league's CBA provisions regarding salary-cap circumventions permit circumstantial evidence and allow the commissioner to impose punishment without rock-solid proof that a violation has occurred. It's not necessary to produce an email from a Clippers staffer with the subject line "Kawhi salary-cap circumvention plan."
Put another way: In a criminal case, investigators might feel they have plenty of evidence that a crime has occurred but not enough to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, as the courts require. And so, the investigation continues.
But Silver doesn't have to worry about that. He can make a judgment based on whatever evidence is available at any point. He could call for this thing to be wrapped up tomorrow and issue a ruling informed by an investigation that, after all these months, would have to qualify as thorough.
Would the Clippers and owner Steve Ballmer be upset if a decision in those circumstances goes against them? Certainly. Would they appeal? Probably, depending on the punishment. But that's all the more reason to get things moving. The commissioner has already allowed this to go on far too long, and now two teams are now stuck in offseason limbo.
It's time for Silver to show some urgency on this file. Long past time, really. Better late than never.
Scott Stinson is a contributing writer for theScore.
