Source: basketnews.com
Forward Kawhi Leonard, who was previously traded by the Los Angeles Clippers to the Toronto Raptors, may have had a concealed multimillion-dollar contract with the company Daktronics, according to investigative journalist Pablo Torre.
Daktronics is a B2B company that does not work with celebrities or enter into sponsorship deals with them. The Clippers reportedly considered this arrangement as a way to circumvent the salary cap, with funds potentially being funneled to Leonard through Daktronics.
According to Torre’s report, Los Angeles paid Daktronics $100 million for the production and installation of the Halo Board at the Intuit Dome arena. Against this backdrop, the hidden contract with Leonard could have served as an additional channel to transfer money to the player outside the salary cap limits. A former Daktronics employee described the deal as “absurd,” noting that the company has maintained a conservative B2B marketing strategy for decades and has never collaborated with stars of this caliber.
This is the third similar story involving Leonard in the past year. Previously, Pablo Torre revealed Leonard’s hidden $28 million four-year contract with the fintech company Aspiration, which involved “work without work,” as well as the forward’s undisclosed stake in the Rhode Island football club. The combined value of these three deals is estimated to exceed $50 million.
The Halo Board, which Daktronics was commissioned to produce for the Clippers, is the largest double-sided video display in arena history. It covers an area of 3,565 square meters and contains over 233 million LEDs. For comparison, typical central scoreboards in NBA arenas usually have between 30 and 50 million LEDs. The roof of the Intuit Dome was specifically designed to accommodate this structure. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has repeatedly called Daktronics the “only partner” capable of delivering the Halo Board.
Related Stories
