SAN ANTONIO -- NBA commissioner Adam Silver declined Wednesday to put a timeline on the conclusion of the investigation of the LA Clippers and their potential salary cap circumvention, but he said the time to "wrap it up" is drawing near.
"The investigation has been conducted by a law firm independent of the NBA," Silver said at Frost Bank Center prior to Game 1 of the 2026 NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks. "Yes, ultimately we're paying their bills, but they are doing the work independent of the league office, and my instruction to them is we can't be investigating forever, but at some point, we have to wrap it up. But at the same time, the most important thing is that we get it right.
"I think it's clear they're far along. I think those reports are reading all the time from people who are being interviewed by them, and I think they understand that you can keep going on and on. But I think we're close to the point now where I think we need to wrap this up because you also need finality. Their team has to understand what the situation is they're going to be operating under, and so do the other 29 teams."
The investigation, led by the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, began in September and is focused on whether the Clippers circumvented the salary cap by funneling money to star Kawhi Leonard through his $28 million endorsement deal with green banking company Aspiration, which also had a $300 million, 23-year endorsement deal with the team. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, who invested $60 million in Aspiration, has denied he had knowledge of Leonard's deal or that he directed the company to strike one.
Aspiration has since gone bankrupt. The company's co-founder, Joe Sanberg, was sentenced to 14 years in prison Monday after pleading guilty to two counts of wire fraud.
Silver was asked about the perception that Monday's development will play a role in his decision about what to do with the Clippers.
"I certainly hear and read things all the time about the perception of what really happened or didn't happen here, and my only reaction is I think I wouldn't be doing my job if ultimately I issue the determination based on perception," Silver said. "My job is to follow the facts, and what essentially happens here is that ... findings will be made by this independent firm. That's presented to me. It's then ultimately my role to determine what the appropriate discipline, if any, should be meted out based on their findings.
"So it's sort of two independent processes there, and that's what's happening right now."
Silver also touched on a few other topics, including:
• Last week, Silver's proposed reforms to the NBA's draft lottery aimed at curbing tanking were passed by the league's board of governors.
"Tanking is not a new issue for this league," Silver said. "I think maybe what surprised us all a little bit is how quickly it became acceptable behavior in this league. I think it used to be limited, frankly, to a small group of teams. I think there was -- I think I could genuinely stand up and talk about rebuilding and not say 'tanking,' and it was practiced in a different way. I don't know how else to say it.
"We found ourselves in a situation this year where all of a sudden it seemed like a third of the league maybe was responding in what an economist would say is very rational behavior but nontraditional behavior in terms of what they saw as a clear incentive to fall to the bottom of the standings. And it maybe or likely was compounded by the fact that there's a perception of a very deep draft class this year. But we ultimately concluded that we needed to take immediate action."
• Silver gave his latest update on potential expansion, reiterating what he has said several times before: The NBA will have a firm decision on whether it will be expanding to Las Vegas and/or Seattle by the end of 2026.
"Discussions are ongoing," Silver said. "As I think everyone knows at this point, we are focused on Las Vegas and Seattle. There's multiple groups interested in both cities. We are in discussions with them. The timeline is, as I've said before, it's not a foregone conclusion that we will expand either in one city or both cities. But what we have told all interested parties, our anticipation is our [board of governors] will make a decision by the end of this calendar year."
• Silver also talked at length about the league's proposed creation of a European league. The NBA has been engaged in discussions with the EuroLeague, the current top competition on the continent, about merging with the NBA's potential plan.
He said the league remains on pace to start with the 2027-28 season and that final bids from prospective owners of the new teams will be due by the end of June.
"The structure [for the league] is in place," Silver said. "So what we are planning to launch is, essentially, a 16-team league, with 12 permanent franchises, and then the ability for, frankly, any club in Europe to play [into] those remaining slots.
"That's the structure [we're going to use], that we're talking to these potential franchises about. Some are existing franchises that play in Europe, and then there's groups that are coming together and want to launch teams in cities that don't have top-level basketball right now.
"In terms of the EuroLeague, discussions are ongoing with them. It's our hope that we can find a way to integrate these operations with the EuroLeague, but we will move forward either way."