Kenny Smith: Clippers' Punishment Was Deserved
NBA analyst Kenny Smith says the Clippers' salary-cap penalties were fair, warning the loss of five draft picks could cripple the roster for years.
Kenny Smith says the Clippers had it coming.
The two-time NBA champion and Inside the NBA analyst told TMZ Sports the franchise's punishment for circumventing the salary cap over Kawhi Leonard's 2019 deal was fully deserved.
The NBA fined the Clippers $30m and stripped the club of draft picks, while owner Steve Ballmer was suspended for a year, as reported here on 2026-09-04. Smith singled out the loss of five first-round picks as the part that could hurt longest.
Draft picks are how a roster gets rebuilt on the cheap, and losing five of them leaves the Clippers short of that route for years.
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