Danilo Gallinari blasts Kawhi Leonard for derailing NBA career with Clippers scandal
· Yahoo Sports
The NBA handed down its punishments earlier this month to the Los Angeles Clippers for violating salary cap circumvention rules in a case involving Kawhi Leonard.
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Los Angeles was forced to forfeit five first-round picks from 2029-33. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer was fined $30 million and suspended from all league and team activities for one year. President of business operations Gillian Zucker was suspended without pay for one year, and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank was suspended without pay for six months.
Leonard was also fined $700,000, although he didn't receive any suspension. And the trade that'll send him to the Toronto Raptors was completed Monday after being put on hold due to the league's investigation. But some people feel the superstar forward emerged from this yearlong saga relatively unscathed.
Among that group is Danilo Gallinari, who was affected by Los Angeles' decision to circumvent the salary cap rules when it signed Leonard in 2019. He was traded from the Clippers to the OKC Thunder that summer in a deal that paired Leonard with Paul George.
In a recent episode of his A Cresta Alta podcast, Gallinari claimed Leonard should pay "all of that $50 million," referring to the reported $48 million that Leonard received via off-court income opportunities with four companies.
“In my opinion, considering he altered the trajectory of my career and landed me in a mess by shipping me out of Los Angeles, he deserves to pay the full amount," Gallinari said in Italian. "He needs to pay every single cent of that money he took. He ought to give it to charity. Since he has to pay it anyway, let it go to a good cause. But first and foremost, he absolutely has to pay it."
Gallinari's career was certainly altered by Los Angeles' decision to pursue Leonard in 2019, although he hardly found himself in a mess of a situation. He spent the following season with OKC, where he helped the team reach the playoffs with averages of 18.7 points and 5.2 rebounds.
Gallinari then signed a three-year, $61.5 million contract with the Atlanta Hawks in 2020. He became the first player under the most recent collective bargaining agreement at the time (2017) to sign for over $20 million per season despite being over the age of 30 with no career All-Star appearances.
Gallinari did miss all of the 2022-23 season due to a torn ACL in his left knee. He then spent the following season with the Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks before signing with Puerto Rico's Vaqueros de Bayamón. And he announced his retirement from basketball on Dec. 2, 2025.
Gallinari told HoopsHype on Wednesday that he's "probably the biggest what-if guy in NBA history," having also had back surgery in 2009 and tearing his ACL in 2013. But placing any of that blame on Leonard would be a reach.
Justin Martinez covers the Thunder and NBA for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Justin? He can be reached at [email protected] or on X/Twitter at @Justintohoops. Sign up for the Thunder Sports Minute newsletter to access more NBA coverage. Support Justin's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Danilo Gallinari blasts Kawhi Leonard for derailing NBA career with Clippers scandal