The ongoing saga involving the Los Angeles Clippers, Kawhi Leonard, and the bankrupt company Aspiration has taken another dramatic turn. Journalist Pablo Torre has been at the forefront of the investigation, recently crediting the minority owner of the Dallas Mavericks for sending him down a crucial reporting path. Torre tweeted that a source claimed Cuban “literally described exactly what they did to circumvent the cap,” suggesting Cuban’s insights were key to uncovering the Clippers’ alleged financial maneuvers.

This public acknowledgment seemed to position Cuban as an ally in Torre’s fact-finding mission. However, the billionaire businessman has now responded directly, and his message is not one of support. Instead of backing Torre’s conclusions, Cuban has issued a sharp public challenge, questioning the very foundation of the reporter’s investigative narrative and its focus on Clippers owner Steve Ballmer.

Mark Cuban took to X and delivered a lengthy, point-by-point rebuttal. He began sarcastically, “Pablo. Glad I could help!” before immediately pivoting to a series of demanding questions. He pressed Torre to “admit that you and your sources who said it was common knowledge the $50m was for cap circumvention were incorrect?”. Adding “And the Wong 2m and 10m weren’t directed to KL ?”.

Torre’s own post credited Cuban with a lead and quoted a source saying “He literally described exactly what they did,” a source says, “to circumvent the cap.” Cuban also urged a close look at the carbon credits mechanics and recommended talking to industry experts. Cuban argued that the timing of investments near Leonard’s payment dates was coincidental, stating “A contract paid quarterly is always going to be close to any investment”.

His strongest critique focused on Torre’s analysis of the carbon credit purchases. Cuban insisted that Torre “focus too much on the dates” and needed to understand the business mechanics, suggesting the funds were for Aspiration to “plant the tree or whatever kind they bought” to generate credits. He accused Torre of relying on circular reporting from mid-level sources who “didn’t know sh–” about the fraud masterminded by Aspiration’s Joe Sanberg, the one person who allegedly “controlled everything”.

The public timeline that reporting has assembled is granular: a $50 million Ballmer investment in September 2021, multiple Clippers transfers for alleged carbon credits in April and June of 2022, a $1.75 million Aspiration payment to Leonard in July 2022 and again in December after a $1.99 million injection from Clippers minority owner Dennis Wong, and a nearly $10 million Ballmer infusion in March 2023 while Aspiration was in distress.

Aspiration’s co founder later pleaded guilty to fraud and the NBA hired Wachtell Lipton to investigate. Commissioner Adam Silver has said “I would be reluctant to act if there was a mere appearance of impropriety. I think the goal of a full investigation is to find if there really was impropriety”. Cuban’s public nudge at Torre has sharpened the argument over intent and kept the pressure on Ballmer and the league to sort fact from coincidence.

Cuban’s Shot at Ballmer

While his tweet offered a technical critique, Cuban’s most devastating commentary on Ballmer was actually delivered within Torre’s own report. In a clip from the “Pablo Torre Finds Out” podcast, Cuban analyzed Ballmer’s decision to invest more money into the failing Aspiration. He presented a stark binary choice, suggesting that if Ballmer was involved in a scheme to pay Leonard, his actions were foolishly obvious.

Cuban stated, “Because if Steve knew and the minute he found out that this was falling apart and these guys were a scam, he’d say, ‘Let me invest some more money so you can pay off Kawhi so this whole thing goes away and there’s no evidence of it any longer and let’s just erase all this from the books.’ You don’t leave this outstanding debt out there”. He then delivered his brutal conclusion: “If Ballmer was involved and he just immediately squared the circle, to use your term, the minute things went sour, he’s a fu—– moron”.

And as per Torre’s latest documentation, he revealed Joe Sanberg invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination during a deposition in October 2024. This occurred amid ongoing civil litigation tied to Aspiration’s financial collapse and federal fraud investigations.

The deposition was part of proceedings related to investor claims and the company’s bankruptcy, where Sanberg was questioned about his role in securing investments, including those from high-profile figures like Steve Ballmer. The key moment occurred when Sanberg was directly asked: “Were you the one who landed Ballmer as an investor?” Sanberg’s Response: He invoked his Fifth Amendment rights, refusing to answer. This single invocation has been highlighted in reporting as “damning” because it avoided confirming or denying involvement in potentially fraudulent dealings.

This quote fundamentally undermines Ballmer’s primary defense of being a conned victim. Cuban’s logic frames Ballmer’s actions not as those of a duped investor, but as potential panic moves by someone trying to cover his tracks. By labeling such behavior “moronic,” Cuban outed Ballmer, implying that the Clippers owner’s story doesn’t hold up to basic rational scrutiny. This public flogging from a respected peer adds immense pressure on both the NBA’s investigation and Ballmer’s crumbling narrative.