news-engine

The NBA made an unprecedented decision on Wednesday. Nearly one year after the spark of an investigation into the Los Angeles Clippers for salary cap circumvention in connection to star Kawhi Leonard, Adam Silver and the league office didn't just fine the organization $30 million — the Clippers were stripped of their first-round picks in the next five seasons, owner Steve Ballmer was suspended for one year, and Leonard was ordered to repay $700,000 in restitution for improper benefits. The fallout of the investigation led to some of the most dire consequences seen in a scandal across all of professional sports history, with the Clippers' future now looking bleak. Here's a look at some of the other punishments from major sports scandals and how they compare to the Clippers'. MORE: Full details of NBA's investigation, punishment for Clippers Worst punishments in sports history BountyGate From 2009-12, the New Orleans Saints in the NFL allegedly placed "bounties" on opposing players, where if the targeted opponent was knocked out of the game, the defensive player who made the hit would receive a bonus. It was a scandal that resulted in some of the NFL's worst discipline ever. Under head coach Sean Payton and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, the Saints had a "slash fund" between 22 to 27 players with pooled cash intended to be used for the "bounties." When a player did force an opponent out of the game with a hit, it would result in $1,500, or $1,000 for a "cart-off." Following an extensive NFL investigation, the league announced in March 2012 that Payton would be suspended for the full 2012 season, Williams was suspended indefinitely (and was reinstated in 2013), general manager Mickey Loomis was suspended eight games, assistant head coach Joe Vitt was suspended six games, and the Saints were fined $500,000 and stripped of their second-round picks in 2012 and 2013. Additionally, players like Jonathan Vilma, Anthony Hargrave, Will Smith and Scott Fujita were suspended. SMU ‘death penalty’ There have been plenty of NCAA scandals over the years, particularly in the pre-NIL era, where financial payouts for players were completely against the rules. While times have changed, SMU received one of the more dire academic and athletic sanctions ever in 1987. At SMU, boosters and athletic officials allegedly operated a secret cash fund intended to pay top recruits and athletes, with players receiving stipends every month. And even after the school was placed on probation in 1985, university officials continued to make the secret payments in order to honor the deals they made with players. After a former SMU player, David Stanley, went public with evidence of the payments, an NCAA investigation resulted in significant penalties due to them being a repeat violator. SMU's entire 1987 football season was canceled, and all 1988 home games were banned, reducing that schedule to only away games. Off-campus recruiting was also banned for a year, with coaches extremely limited in how they could acquire players, and active players were permitted to transfer immediately. Considering the effects those punishments would have on recruiting even after the canceled season, it was essentially a "death penalty." But SMU slowly recovered — after nearly every player transferred away in 1987 and the team was finally able to return to football in 1989, it primarily played freshmen and walk-ons. It wasn't until 2009 that the team made a return to a postseason bowl game for the first time since the sanctions. MORE: Winners & losers from the Clippers cap circumvention punishments Nov 24, 2019; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) reacts to fans during warm up before the start of the game against the Dallas Cowboys at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images DeflateGate During the 2014 AFC Championship Game between the Patriots and Broncos, with New England smack in the middle of its dynastic years led by Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, they were caught in one of a few scandals to come. In that playoff game — which resulted in a 45-7 Patriots win, advancing to the Super Bowl — Brady allegedly ordered the intentional underinflation of footballs, as Colts linebacker D'Qwell Jackson intercepted a pass, leading to Colts officials noticing the ball felt soft. Game officials measured the air pressure, finding that all 11 of the Patriots' footballs were below the mandated PSI range, offering a potential advantage in cold conditions. It resulted in a legal battle between Brady, the NFLPA and the NFL. The Patriots' side argued that the drop in pressure was due to the cold, wet weather in the area, rather than any tampering with footballs. But after the NFL conducted an independent investigation, the "Wells Report" from independent investigator Ted Wells concluded that it was "more probable than not" that the team's equipment staff tampered with footballs, with Brady "at least generally aware." Brady was suspended four games and the Patriots were fined an NFL-record $1 million and stripped of a 2016 first-round pick and 2017 fourth-round pick. Brady's suspension took some time to be appealed, reaching federal courts, but he ultimately served it in 2016 — and the team wound up winning another Super Bowl that year. Timberwolves scandal Prior to the Clippers' 2026 scandal, the most notable team-focused investigation in NBA history was another salary circumvention issue with the Minnesota Timberwolves. In 2000, an NBA investigation found that the Timberwolves, including owner Glen Taylor and executive Kevin McHale, entered into a secret agreement with former No. 1 pick Joe Smith, who had signed three-straight one-year contracts worth around a total of $6 million. In their secret agreement with Smith, however, Minnesota allegedly said it would give Smith an $86 million extension later on after it secured his Early Bird rights. A legal dispute between sports agents helped unveil the cam circumvention, and commissioner David Stern docked the Timberwolves five first-round picks (2001-2005, with the 2003 pick later returned) and fined them $3.5 million, which was the maximum permitted at the time. Similar to the 2026 Clippers, Taylor was also suspended from team operations, while McHale was forced to take an unpaid leave and Smith's contract was voided. Astros sign stealing In the 2017 and 2018 seasons, MLB's Houston Astros allegedly executed a systematic sign-stealing scheme using live video feeds and audible cues for hitters, helping them know what pitch was coming. It helped led the team to a World Series title in 2017. It wasn't until 2019 that the scheme became public, as former pitcher Mike Fiers flagged it in an interview after it was rumored for some time, leading to an MLB investigation. The scheme allegedly involved team personnel installing a hidden camera at their home field aimed directly at opposing catchers' signs, which was fed live to the tunnel inside the Astros' dugout. Players and staff monitored the TV and would bang a trash can with a bat to indicate what pitch was coming to the batter. In 2020, commissioner Rob Manfred released a report confirming the scheme, and the Astros were fined $5 million and docked first-and-second-round picks in both 2020 and 2021, while manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow were suspended the entire 2020 season, then fired by the team. No players were disciplined, as they were granted full immunity for cooperation with the investigation. The fallout also followed some figures from the organization, with former bench coach Alex Cora — allegedly the primary architect of the scheme — parting ways with the Red Sox, where he was manager at the time. Carlos Beltran, who was a player on the 2017 Astros then hired by Mets as manager in 2020, was also let go by New York before ever managing a game. McLaren F1 scandal In 2007, the McLaren F1 team was caught in a controversy involving possession of a confidential technical dossier that belonged to the team's rival, Ferrari. A disgruntled chief mechanic at Ferrari, Nigel Stepney, stole the documents and gave them to Mike Coughlin, McLaren's chief designer. When Coughlin's wife took the documents to a photocopy shop in England, the shop owner contacted Ferrari headquarters, with McLaren initially claiming Stepney was simply a "rogue employee" and that McLaren had not used any Ferrari information on its own car. The FIA initially let the case go, but it reopened at the 2007 Hungarian Grand Prix. McLaren teammates Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton were caught in a feud, and Alonso threatened the team's principal, Ron Dennis, that he would leak emails about the Ferrari documents to the FIA unless Hamilton was punished. Dennis, though, reported Alonso's threat, and the league re-opened the investigation. Emails between Alonso and test driver Pedro de la Rosa showed that McLaren drivers and engineers had been discussing details of Ferrari's cars and strategies. In September 2007, the FIA's World Motor Sport Council announced a record $100 million fine on McLaren, along with the team being disqualified and stripped of all points from the 2007 World Constructor's Championship. Alonso and Hamilton were granted immunity for providing evidence; in 2008, McLaren was also required to submit their chassis to the FIA to prove no Ferrari intel was used. Dolphins tampering In August 2022, the NFL announced the results of a tampering scandal with the Miami Dolphins that did not result in any players acquired, but did show illegal communications while recruiting Tom Brady and head coach Sean Payton. An investigation found that over multiple years, the Dolphins, including vice president Bruce Beal, began discussions with Brady as early as August 2019, with Miami asking the star quarterback to join the team as a partner, executive or player. Both Beal and president Stephen Ross resumed communications with Brady during and after the 2021 season, when he was with the Buccaneers, discussing him acquiring minority ownership. Additionally, in 2022, the Dolphins contacted Payton's agent, Don Yee, about becoming the team's coach despite the Saints organization not being made aware. As a result, Ross was fined $1.5 million and suspended from all team operations until October 2022, while Beal was fined $500,000 and banned from all NFL meetings the following season. Miami was stripped of its 2023 first-round pick and 2024 third-round pick; Brady and Payton were not penalized, with the NFL's anti-tampering policies focusing on the pursuing franchise, rather than the player/coach.