Adam Silver, in his 12th year as NBA commissioner, will preside over a Board of Governors meeting Monday and Tuesday in New York that could set major events into motion, according to ESPN. Silver is scheduled to deliver a news conference Tuesday, when several agenda items that have been months or years in the making may be publicly unveiled, according to ESPN.
The Clippers investigation and resulting punishments figure to dominate discussion. Last week the league revoked five first-round draft picks from the Clippers and assessed a record $30 million fine, according to ESPN. The league’s penalty package also includes a compliance and monitoring program to be enforced by the league office for five years; the terms of that program were described as nebulous, according to ESPN.
The Clippers have not publicly accepted the penalties or said whether they will pursue legal action, and have not announced who will serve as the team’s governor in place of suspended owner Steve Ballmer or who will act as interim head of basketball operations in place of suspended Lawrence Frank, according to ESPN. The team also has not executed the trade to send Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors that was agreed to on the first day of free agency, according to ESPN.
League sources told ESPN that the NBA issued its penalties knowing Ballmer might respond litigious ly, and that settlement talks between the league and the Clippers reportedly had failed before the Wachtell, Lipton report was made public. ESPN also reported a side agreement with the players’ union that required Leonard to accept a $700,000 reimbursement penalty and removed the Clippers’ option to take the matter to arbitration.
Beyond the Clippers matter, owners are expected to discuss NBA Europe and the next steps in league expansion, topics that could be advanced by presentations and formal votes at the meeting, according to ESPN. The coming session has been framed within the league office as a consequential Board of Governors meeting with public announcements to follow.
