The National Basketball Association's decision to impose sweeping penalties on the Los Angeles Clippers for salary cap violations has received support from former player and current analyst Kenny Smith, who characterized the franchise's actions as deliberate cheating that merited serious repercussions.
Smith addressed the controversy on Friday when approached by TMZ Sports at Los Angeles International Airport, offering his perspective on whether the league's disciplinary measures were appropriate given the severity of the violations.
"You're gonna have to suffer consequences for that kind of behavior," Smith told TMZ Sports. "You're vehemently cheating. You're not just toeing the line. You're actually cheating and you're cheating at a high level. You're circumventing the salary cap. You're giving yourself an unfair advantage that no one else has, and you have to have severe penalties for that or other people will say, 'Well we can do it.'"
The penalties handed down by the NBA include the forfeiture of five first-round draft picks, a $30 million fine against the organization, and a full-season suspension for owner Steve Ballmer. Multiple executives within the franchise also received suspensions as part of the disciplinary action.
Smith dismissed suggestions that the league had been too lenient in its response to the violations. He emphasized the long-term impact the loss of draft picks would have on the franchise's ability to rebuild and develop talent.
"It's gonna cripple their franchise possibly for the next five to seven years," Smith told TMZ Sports. "You take away five years of draft picks, that's your core of how you develop your team. So yeah, it's definitely tough."
The controversy centers on star player Kawhi Leonard, whose involvement in the salary cap violations has drawn scrutiny. However, Leonard himself received comparatively minimal punishment, facing only a $700,000 fine with no suspension. The consensus view, according to the source, is that Leonard was not hit hard by the penalties.
While $700,000 represents a substantial sum in absolute terms, the fine amounts to just over one game's salary for the future Hall of Fame player, highlighting the disparity between the penalties imposed on the organization and those affecting the individual athlete at the center of the case.
Smith offered his theory regarding why the NBA chose not to impose harsher penalties on Leonard specifically, though the details of his explanation were not included in the published report.
The case represents one of the most significant disciplinary actions taken by the NBA against a franchise for salary cap violations, with the combination of financial penalties, executive suspensions, and the loss of multiple years of draft capital creating what Smith described as potentially crippling consequences for the Clippers organization moving forward.