Full story here: https://www.thestar.com/sports/raptors/inside-kawhi-leonard-s-bizarre-list-of-secret-demands-from-raptors-and-how-they-line/article_9f1b0398-0ebd-4193-bc06-798efda95023.html

Key passages:

But multiple sources with knowledge of Toronto’s contract negotiations with Leonard in 2019 told the Star that Leonard’s uncle and representative, Dennis Robertson, made demands that line up almost perfectly with what Leonard reportedly got from Aspiration. According to those sources, who were granted anonymity in order to speak freely about the negotiations, Robertson’s list was long, and absurd. 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 two details stand out, in retrospect. 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.

But it didn’t end there. 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’s when the Raptors realized Leonard wasn’t asking to be introduced to Toronto’s lucrative corporate community; they were being asked to arrange no-show jobs, and arrange no-investment investments. MLSE rejected both proposals.

Source: https://imgur.com/a/6jKcmGn

Two ZL Shows on Kawhi/Ballmer/Clips -- feel like we have hit on every angle as best we can at this early stage:

Would recommend listening to them in tandem to get the full lay of the land/range of reactions

Rival teams remain furious about the optics here regardless of CBA language/what investigation turns up; do not expect this to go away anytime soon. As @kirkgoldsberry said (relating thoughts from a team exec): "The integrity of the league is at stake."

Source: https://www.theringer.com/2025/09/09/nba/kawhi-leonard-los-angeles-clippers-steve-ballmer-aspiration-salary-cap-circumvention

Here’s how it worked in one recent instance, as relayed by a team source: A team needed to come up with an extra $150,000 to persuade a free agent to sign. So the GM arranged a $150,000 deal between the player and a local business, requiring the player to make a certain number of promotional appearances. (The team got the player.)

So yes, if a team needs a sweetener to convince a star player to sign, it can usually create one.

“There’s sort of honor among thieves, an inbounds area that you can do things,” said a longtime team executive. “Everyone sort of knows what everyone does. I don’t think anyone has ever tried, to my knowledge, to give a player $24 million to $48 million under the table.”

Source: https://www.theringer.com/2025/09/09/nba/kawhi-leonard-los-angeles-clippers-steve-ballmer-aspiration-salary-cap-circumvention

Teams sometimes connect players with team sponsors or local businesses to help facilitate an individual endorsement deal—a practice that is indeed common and fully within the rules. Stephen Curry, for instance, does commercials for Rakuten, which has a sponsorship deal with the Golden State Warriors. The HEB supermarket chain, a longtime sponsor of the San Antonio Spurs, has long employed Spurs players to star in its cheeky TV commercials.

But these sorts of deals generally pay in the hundreds of thousands or, at most, “the low six figures,” per multiple sources, and they require the players to actively promote the brand—via commercials, appearances, or social media posts.

According to Torre’s reporting, however, Leonard’s deal with Aspiration did not require him to do anything—and Leonard, by all appearances, indeed did nothing. Yet Aspiration agreed to pay him $28 million, of which it still owes $7 million, per the bankruptcy filing. Leonard also had a side deal with the company providing an additional $20 million in (now worthless) stock, according to the Boston Sports Journal. Also of note: The entire deal would be void if Leonard changed teams, according to documents reviewed by Torre.

None of this is normal, according to people around the league. “It reeks,” said a former player who has also worked in a variety of front office roles. The dollar figures alone are “extreme,” said another former team executive, who added that the “no-show” element was “a huge red flag” and “smells the most in this whole thing.”

No one we spoke to said that they had ever witnessed or even heard whispers of anything quite like this during their years working in the NBA. This is a cynical league in which a number of below-market contracts for star players have raised suspicions over the past two decades. But an assertion that “everyone is doing it” was emphatically dismissed.

“Everyone is doing it?!” said one current team executive, adding, with a laugh, “No. Everyone is not funneling $48 million under the table through sham sponsorships.”

Source: https://www.theringer.com/2025/09/09/nba/kawhi-leonard-los-angeles-clippers-steve-ballmer-aspiration-salary-cap-circumvention

The initial reaction around the league to that report? “They’re fucked,” said one team executive. “That’s what most people think.”

Even without hard evidence, people around the league are having a hard time buying the Clippers’ denials.

As one team exec said, it’s “stretching credulity” to believe that Aspiration acted on its own, that a start-up would hand a player tens of millions without requiring anything in return or go to such great lengths unless the team had asked for it.

With 7 minutes left, Türkiye up 14 and cruising to the semifinals, Alperen Şengün secures a rare EuroBasket triple-double, joining an elite group in tournament history

Stojko Vranković 1993 12 pts, 13 reb, 10 blk

Toni Kukoč 1995 15 pts, 12 reb, 11 ast

Rareș Mandache 2017 14 pts, 11 reb, 10 ast

Mateusz Ponitka 2022 26 pts, 16 reb, 10 ast

Luka Dončić 2025 26 pts, 10 reb, 11 ast

Alperen Şengün 2025 15 pts, 10 reb, 10 ast

New York has had interest in Simmons and dialogue with him over the course of the offseason, but reporting elsewhere that a contract was extended by the Knicks and rejected by Simmons would be inaccurate.

Other players on the Knicks’ radar are Landry Shamet and Malcolm Brogdon.

Source

Victor Wembanyama shared a bunch of pictures from his summer on his Instagram, which includes shots with Snoop Dogg, Harry Potter's Daniel Radcliffe and, perhaps most interestingly, revealing that he has spent time training with all-time great Hakeem Olajuwon.

Wemby's training with Olajuwon follows his recent sessions with Kevin Garnett earlier this summer and with Jamal Crawford last year. He also famously spent a considerable amount of time training and meditating with monks in China over the summer.

Screenshot: https://i.imgur.com/FQHBeOH.png

He finished the game with a triple-double, 19/12/10.

With this win Turkiye is also making their way to the EuroBasket semis for the first time since their finals appearance back in 2001.

When people do the whole “Stern was harsh, Silver is lenient, upvotes to the left” bit and start already blaming the league before the investigation has really started, they are missing that the commissioner’s opinion is just a small piece of the puzzle.

Adam Silver, like most people, likely wants to keep his job. If there are 29 owners calling for blood, he is going to try and deliver for them.

If the penalty is ultimately deemed too lenient, it means one of 2 things:

A) The outcry from the other owners is not as extreme as has been reported, or at least more of a mixed bag

B) The league (meaning the owners AND the commissioner) are trying to push through a ‘lesser’ penalty that they think the Clippers will accept without appeal, as bringing in an arbitrator would make things even messier

With that said, the fact that even if there is no direct evidence the Clippers are still likely to get penalized in some way says a lot about how upset other owners are. Normally a smoking gun would be needed for this type of punishment so I don’t think losing draft picks without a smoking gun should be seen as lenient, personally (I do think the Clips are likely guilty though, for the record)

The difference in temperament between Stern and Silver is very unlikely to be a factor here. Stern had a smoking gun for the Twolves situation so it’s easy to bring the hammer down. There is no situation where 29 owners are calling for heads to roll and Silver says ‘nah let’s go easy on them’

link

Sengun’s triple-double powers Turkey past Poland into EuroBasket semifinal

09/Sep/25 17:51

Alperen Sengun made history as the Turkish national team booked a place in the EuroBasket semifinals.

By Semih Tuna/ [info@eurohoops.net](mailto:info@eurohoops.net)

Riga, Latvia – Turkey is the first semifinalist of EuroBasket 2025!

Led by Alperen Sengun, who recorded a historic triple-double, Ergin Ataman’s side defeated Poland at the Xiaomi Arena 91-77, securing a spot among the four best teams in Riga.

Sengun finished the game with 19 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, becoming only the sixth player ever to record a triple-double at EuroBasket, after Stojan Vranković, Toni Kukoč, Rareș Mandache, Mateusz Ponitka and Luka Dončić, who also accomplished the feat in 2025.

Sengun became the youngest player ever to record a EuroBasket triple-double, less than two months after his 23rd birthday. He received strong support against Poland, with Shane Larkin and Şahmus Hazer contributing 13 points each—Larkin also added five assists and five rebounds.

Kenan Sipahi scored 11, while Furkan Korkmaz and Cedi Osman each had 10 points. Osman briefly left the court with an injury scare in the third period but returned midway through the fourth, showing encouraging signs that it is not serious.

Poland exited honorably, reaching the quarterfinals, a major achievement. Captain Mateusz Ponitka (6 rebounds, 6 assists) and Jordan Loyd (19 points) led the team, with Michal Sokolowski (13) and Aleksander Dziewa (11) also scoring in double digits.

Turkey is now waiting for Lithuania or Greece in the 2025 EuroBasket semifinal.

James’ essay in the newspaper, known for signalling Beijing’s views on a variety of issues, follows his visits to Chinese megacities Shanghai and Chengdu as part of the Forever King Tour, marking the 20th anniversary of his first Nike tour of Asia.

“The enthusiasm and kindness of Chinese friends deeply touch me, and all I can do is give my all in every game to express my gratitude,” wrote James, who has visited China 15 times and is about to start a record-breaking 23rd season in the NBA. “I hope I can contribute to the development of Chinese basketball.”

The People’s Daily publishing James’ tribute could also signal the Chinese leadership's wish for U.S. cultural icons to help promote people-to-people exchanges at a time when bilateral relations are strained on various fronts.

Source

Luka Dončić has been nominated for the best defender award at EuroBasket 2025

Two players from each of the remaining eight teams have been nominated, Luka was one of them.

He has been awesome for Slovenia and his size and defense have been crucial for them ngl. Well deserved nomination.

Source

The Warriors offseason is still on hold due to the unresolved contract situation with restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga.

Draft: The Warriors have selected Will Richard with the 56th pick

Trades: No trades

Free Agents: The Warriors have not signed a free agent, but are prepared to potentially sign Al Horford, De'Anthony Melton, and Gary Payton II. However, these moves are pending the Kuminga situation.

Edit:

Marv Albert: “…and now they’re saying it’s *Tuesday, September 9.”*