Attorneys representing Steve Ballmer are seeking to dismiss a lawsuit that alleges the LA Clippers owner participated in fraud by funneling money to star Kawhi Leonard through a now-defunct green banking company, according to court documents. The filing calls the allegations “sensational” and “patently false.”
The response addresses a lawsuit initially filed on July 9, 2025, by 11 investors in Aspiration, which filed for bankruptcy in March of that year. The lawsuit alleged the investors were defrauded out of millions by Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg and others at the company.
Ballmer was not originally named as a defendant. However, following reports by journalist and podcast host Pablo Torre that said Ballmer’s investment in Aspiration was an effort to circumvent the NBA’s salary cap, the investors filed an amended complaint on November 3, 2025, naming Ballmer as a defendant.
“Plaintiffs would not have invested and/or kept their investment in (Aspiration) if Ballmer and Sanberg had disclosed the true nature of Ballmer’s investment,” the November 3 complaint reads. “Ballmer thus supported and participated in Sanberg’s fraud.”
Ballmer and the Clippers have denied they circumvented the salary cap to pay Leonard. The team has said they are cooperating with the NBA’s investigation into the allegations.
In September 2021, the Clippers and Aspiration announced a $300 million, 23-year sponsorship deal. That same month, Ballmer invested $50 million in Aspiration, according to the Athletic. Four months later, in April 2022, Aspiration signed a separate four-year, $28 million sponsorship deal with Leonard.
In Monday’s filing, Ballmer’s attorneys say his name was added to the lawsuit “in (the investors’) zeal to recover assets swindled by Sanberg from anybody with the means to pay” and that “there are no facts demonstrating an agreement between Ballmer and Sanberg to engage in salary cap circumvention.”
Ballmer’s attorneys say the Clippers owner was a victim of Sanberg’s fraud and lost his investment. In October 2025, Sanberg formally pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud, each carrying a maximum of 20 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for February 23, 2026.