Tim Hardaway makes shocking Pat Riley claim amid Kawhi Leonard salary cap controversy

The Los Angeles Clippers and star player Kawhi Leonard are at the center of controversy after reports emerged that franchise owner Steve Ballmer and Leonard allegedly attempted to circumvent the NBA’s salary cap restrictions.

Reports claim that Ballmer gave Leonard a “no-show” $28 million endorsement deal to supplement his contract and ensure he earned more than the salary cap allowed. While Ballmer and Clippers management have categorically denied these allegations, NBA commissioner Adam Silver has formed a task force to investigate the matter.

Naismith Hall of Famer Tim Hardaway recently weighed in, making a startling claim involving Pat Riley and noting that similar practices have occurred in the NBA since the 1980s and 1990s.

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“Pat Riley tried to pay two people over $20 million a year. They were like, ‘How are you doing that? You still have other guys to pay — you can’t do that!’ If we found out that you told one guy this and another guy that, then you were going to be suspended, fined, and penalized in 1996,” Hardaway said.

Kawhi Leonard asked for so many ridiculous things from all these teams but he had incredible leverage.

It is rare that anyone has multiple billionaires over a barrel

It is up to the Owners to say no and there is NO way Kawhi created this culture of ridiculous player requests…

— Alex B. (@KnicksCentral) September 17, 2025

“He had to void the contract to avoid fines. They were even talking about suspending him for the entire season, not just 50 games,” he added.

Hardaway referenced the Juwan Howard case with the Miami Heat in 1996, when Riley signed Howard to a seven-year, $101 million contract. The NBA later penalized the franchise for exceeding that year’s salary cap.

Riley has maintained that neither he nor the franchise acted improperly. While different from the Kawhi situation, Hardaway believes it was still a circumvention of the salary rules at the time.

“You try to get away with what you can and hope you don’t get caught. I’m all about players securing their money. You never know when injuries will strike. Guys like Isaiah Thomas and DeMarcus Cousins chased their payday but got hurt before cashing in. That’s unfortunate — they deserved it too. Get it however you can,” Hardaway concluded.

The NBA has since hired an outside law firm to investigate the Clippers and Leonard, and the findings could have major implications for both the player and the franchise.

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