NBA Hits Clippers With Historic Penalties

Summary

Bloomberg senior sports reporter Randall Williams discusses the NBA's historic penalties against the Los Angeles Clippers for salary-cap circumvention involving Kawhi Leonard, the WNBA commissioner stepping down, Bloomberg's Power Players sports business conference, and US Open ticket and crowd dynamics. The conversation is mostly sports news and business commentary with no directly tradable public-market ideas.

• The NBA fined the Clippers $30 million and stripped five first-round picks after finding they hid off-court endorsement deals for Kawhi Leonard.
• Steve Ballmer was suspended for a year and Kawhi Leonard was fined $700,000.
• Randall Williams says an appeal is unlikely because the punishment was collectively bargained.
• He does not expect the Milwaukee Bucks to receive a similar punishment.
• WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert is stepping down after expanding the league and building media deals.
• Bloomberg Power Players will focus on sports business, influencers, athletes, and investors.
• US Open ticket prices have fallen from early highs, with cheaper weekday ground passes, while influencer and crowd behavior remains an issue.