Letter: Aspiration co-founder cooperated with NBA investigation - ESPN

Attorneys representing the NBA and LA Clippers owner Steve Ballmer submitted separate letters to a federal judge ahead of the sentencing of Joseph Sanberg, the co-founder of Aspiration, a now-defunct green banking company at the center of salary cap circumvention allegations under investigation by the league.

David Anders, the Wachtell Lipton attorney leading the NBA's investigation into whether the Clippers circumvented the league's salary cap to compensate Kawhi Leonard, said Sanberg sat for two in-person interviews and provided documents and, via his lawyers, «information that was relevant to our investigation,» according to an April 17 letter to judge Stephen V. Wilson of the U.S. District Court of the Central District of California.

«In all our dealings with Mr. Sanberg, both directly and through his counsel, he provided information that was consistent with our review of contemporaneous documents and other evidence,» Anders wrote. «Mr. Sanberg's cooperation substantially assisted our investigation, including our ability to develop a more complete understanding of key events. At no time during our dealings with Mr. Sanberg and his counsel did they seek, nor did we make, any promises in exchange for his cooperation.»

Sanberg is scheduled to be sentenced April 27 in federal court in downtown Los Angeles. He previously pled guilty to two counts of wire fraud for his role in a scheme that prosecutors said defrauded investors out of $248 million. Each count carries a maximum of 20 years in prison. Sanberg's attorneys are seeking a lesser sentence, according to a recent court filing.

The letter is the NBA investigator's first public comments about the league's probe. The NBA launched its investigation in September 2025