GALLINARI SAYS KAWHI LEONARD SHOULD PAY $50 MILLION OVER CLIPPERS FINE

Danilo Gallinari, a former Los Angeles Clippers forward, said Kawhi Leonard's $700,000 fine from the NBA over the Clippers' salary cap circumvention case does not go far enough. Speaking on the "A Cresta Alta" podcast, Gallinari said Leonard should pay all $50 million, the sum he said Leonard is set to earn this season, and give it to charity. He said the 2019 trade that ended his time with the Clippers was driven by Leonard, not the team's front office. Gallinari said Leonard "changed the trajectory" of his career by prompting his departure from Los Angeles.

Gallinari was traded from the Clippers in 2019 as part of a deal that brought Paul George to the team and cleared salary cap space for Leonard to sign there. The NBA fined Leonard $700,000 over the salary cap case, while the Clippers were separately fined $30 million and lost five future first-round draft picks, the report said. Leonard previously said he accepted responsibility for "lapses in judgment by people within my inner circle" and regretted the distraction the case caused. Gallinari went on to play 14 seasons across six NBA teams, retiring after a stint with the San Antonio Spurs.

Leonard has not addressed Gallinari's comments directly. It remains unclear whether the NBA will revisit the scope of the fine imposed on Leonard. Gallinari's remarks add another voice to discussion of a case that has drawn attention to how the Clippers assembled the roster that paired George with Leonard from 2019. No further action from the league or the Clippers over the matter has been confirmed.