“One of the avenues you would use to circumvent the cap” – Whistleblower pushes back at Mark Cuban’s defense of Steve Ballmer with his own reasoning

Podcaster Pablo Torre’s back-and-forth with Mark Cuban about Steve Ballmer’s alleged involvement in circumventing the NBA salary cap has gone on for weeks. In early September, Torre revealed that Kawhi Leonard signed a $28 million deal with a company the LA Clippers owner invested in. Cuban said on Sept. 11 that Ballmer, a billionaire, could have skirted the salary cap by another way.

Cuban tweeted that buying more carbon credits from Aspiration, the company Leonard endorsed, was the “easier” and “safer” method to sidestep the salary cap. Torre jumped on that point by digging more. He brought another source, whom he called “Source No. 2,” to push back on Cuban’s defense of Ballmer:

(28:02 mark)

“They did that. [Cuban] literally described one of the few ways that the Clippers and Ballmer got money into Aspiration. He literally described exactly what they did, so he is right. That would be one of the avenues you would use to circumvent the cap.”

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Torre showed a document to guest Dan LeBatard, an LA Clippers document that was sent to a bank on June 14, 2022. The paper authorized a $20,961,382 payment to “Aspiration Sustainable Impact Services, LLC to fund “carbon projects.”

Mark Cuban questioned Pablo Torre’s logic about how the Clippers continued to allegedly keep paying Kawhi Leonard, since Aspiration, according to Torre, “burned cash.” The response from source No. 2, called by the podcaster a former senior executive at Aspiration’s finance department, seemed to answer Cuban’s inquiry.

Steve Ballmer said in an interview with ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne over a week ago that his dealings with Aspiration were aboveboard. Ballmer added that he had no knowledge of Kawhi Leonard’s contract with the company. The LA Clippers also released a statement denying Torre's allegations after the first report came out in early September.

Mark Cuban conceded he could be wrong in Pablo Torre’s reporting about Steve Ballmer

On Tuesday, Mark Cuban tweeted that neither he nor Pablo Torre had anything inconclusive despite their lengthy social media exchange. Cuban praised the “Pablo Torre Finds Out” host for his job as an investigative journalist. The billionaire, however, added that the issue is insanely complicated and insisted Torre “doesn’t understand the business or deal side.”

Cuban left room for error on his part to cap off the tweet:

“I'm not saying I can't be wrong. Maybe I am, and if so, I will congratulate Pablo. He did the work. That counts for a lot.”

Mark Cuban

@mcuban

One last post (unless new info is published of course), and that is why Im so into this. If you pay attention to my posts on here over the many years, I always stand up for people, some i know, some i dont, who have accusations made against them by media or government or

Torre invited Mark Cuban to come on his show again, but the billionaire declined. The NBA is investigating the allegations that stemmed from Torre’s report about Steve Ballmer. Time will tell who is right.

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Michael Macasero

Michael Macasero brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to his coverage of basketball at Sportskeeda with over 18 years of diverse work experience. This includes stints at Convergys, Interpace and RunRepeat.

Michael's background in English and Journalism has provided him with the analytical skills and precision necessary for creating content, and he is a lifelong fan of the Boston Celtics. His favorite players include legends like Larry Bird and Michael Jordan, modern stars like Tim Duncan, and Nikola Jokic, as well as emerging talent like Victor Wembanyama.

Michael respects Gregg Popovich, despite his contentious demeanor in interviews, and recognizes Popovich's genius in adapting his coaching style to maximize the talent on his roster over the years. Michael eagerly anticipates seeing how Popovich will structure the offense around emerging talent like Victor Wembanyama.

Understanding the story and details is crucial to Michael's reporting philosophy and he believes overlooking details, particularly when pressed for time, can lead to misunderstandings and inaccurate conclusions.

Aside from work, Michael's children are his hobbies, and he also likes to go running, swimming and weightlifting.

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