this post was submitted on 03 Sep 2026
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The NBA on Wednesday announced severe punishments for the LA Clippers-- including the loss of five future first-round draft picks, a fine of $30 million and a yearlong suspension of owner Steve Ballmer -- for violating salary cap circumvention rules in a case involving star Kawhi Leonard.

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[–] AlternatePersonMan@lemmy.world 7 points 2 days ago (1 children)

It's late so my math is probably broken, but... Steve Ballmer is worth about $150 billion. A fine of $30 million is roughly 1/5000 of his wealth.

For comparison, if you're worth $100k... That's the equivalent of a $20 fine.

There are no good billionaires.

[–] Kyle 3 points 2 days ago

While you are 1000% correct...I bet an actual $20 fine would drive most billionaires into a violent rage

[–] edcasting@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Oh wow…guess they figured this scandal was too big to hide, even for the richest owner.

[–] acosmichippo@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

No punishment was never an option for the other 29 (lesser) billionaire owners. They don’t actually want to give players any more money, which they would have to do if Ballmer received no punishment and kept circumventing the cap.

[–] 474D@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

They did it the smart way. By giving Kawhi only a slap on the wrist, the player's union accepted the punishment and now Ballmer can't take it to arbitration without them.