The sentencing of Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg to 14 years in federal prison on Monday brings the NBA a step closer to concluding its nine-month investigation into the Clippers allegedly circumventing the salary cap.

Sanberg pleaded guilty in October to federal charges of conspiring to bilk investors out of $248 million for portraying the now-defunct Aspiration as a “socially-conscious and sustainable banking services and investment products” firm.

The NBA has declined to comment on the status of the probe centered on $60 million invested in Aspiration by Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and the $28-million contract Clippers star Kawhi Leonard signed with Aspiration for endorsement and marketing work that he never delivered.

Players are allowed to have separate endorsement and other business deals, but at issue is whether the Clippers participated in arranging the side deal beyond simply introducing Aspiration executives to Leonard. Doing so would be a violation of Article 13 of the NBA collective bargaining agreement, punishable by a $4.5-million fine, the loss of a first-round draft pick and the voiding of Leonard’s contract.

The NBA draft takes place June 23-24 and the Clippers have three picks, including the fifth overall selection. The league is not expected to release its findings until after the NBA Finals, which begin Wednesday between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs.

Clippers officials haven’t commented on the investigation. But Leonard, who has one year left on a three-year, $149.5-million contract that will pay him $50.3 million next season, told The Athletic after the Clippers’ season-ending game April 15 that “I think we’re going to be in the clear. I’m not stressing.”

Otherwise, among the few public comments about the investigation were letters submitted to federal court judge Stephen V. Wilson ahead of Sanberg’s sentencing by Ballmer and the law firm conducting the probe on behalf of the NBA.

The letter from Dave Anders of Wachtell Lipton stated that Sanberg provided documentation and information helpful to the NBA investigation during two in-person interviews.

“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.”

Ballmer countered by asking Wilson for a stiff sentence in a five-page Victim Impact Statement posted on social media by his lawyer, David N. Kelley.

“Sanberg continues to exploit his fraud of Mr. Ballmer for his benefit, providing information to the NBA in return for a sentencing letter that the league submitted on his behalf,” Kelley wrote. “The reliability of Sanberg’s information is suspect given that he has pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges, and the government has made its own determination that he is not credible.”

Before handing down the sentence, Wilson made it clear that Sanberg’s credibility was questionable.

“He portrays himself as a do-gooder who was in business to help the world, but he did personally gain from his fraud,” Wilson said, later adding, “I would put the grade of his fraud at the zenith.”

Ballmer, a former longtime CEO of Microsoft who has owned the Clippers since 2014, accused Sanberg of targeting him for his well-known interest in environmental sustainability and exaggerating their relationship to convince others to invest in the fraudulent company. He said he met Sanberg only once.

Ballmer invested $50 million in Aspiration in September 2021. A month later, the Clippers announced a $300-million sponsorship deal with the company. Ballmer nearly granted Aspiration naming rights to the team’s new $2-billion venue as well, but instead chose financial services firm Intuit. Ballmer made an additional $10-million investment in Aspiration on March 9, 2023.

Ballmer was added in November as a defendant in a civil lawsuit against Sanberg and several others associated with Aspiration. Ballmer and the other defendants are accused by 11 investors in Aspiration of fraud and aiding and abetting fraud, with the plaintiffs seeking at least $50 million in damages.

Kelley contended that Ballmer was added as a defendant because of his “visibility and resources,” and portrayed the Clippers owner as a victim, saying “Mr. Ballmer’s losses are not measured solely, or even primarily, on a balance sheet. They are measured in the reputational damage that will take years to remediate, and in the chilling effect on future endeavors intended to do good.”

The lone public comment about the investigation from NBA Commissioner Adam Silver came during All-Star Weekend in February at the Intuit Dome when he described the issue as “enormously complex.”

“You have a company in bankruptcy, you have thousands of documents, multiple witnesses that needed to be interviewed,” Silver said.

The investigation was triggered by reports from podcaster Pablo Torre that Leonard’s sponsorship deal with Aspiration was to circumvent the salary cap. Torre and the staff of “Pablo Torre Finds Out” won a Pulitzer Prize for Audio Reporting for their efforts.

Rick Adelman, who ranks 10th in NBA history with 1,042 wins, died on Monday. He was 79.

The National Basketball Coaches Association announced his passing. A cause of death was not immediately disclosed.

Adelman spent 23 seasons as an NBA head coach, leading the Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves. He compiled a 1,042-749 regular-season record and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021.

Before coaching, Adelman played seven seasons as an NBA point guard after being drafted by the San Diego Rockets in 1968.

After taking over the Trail Blazers during the 1988-89 season, Adelman led a Clyde Drexler-led roster to NBA Finals appearances in 1990 and 1992.

In 1998, Adelman became the head coach of the Sacramento Kings. The Kings reached the playoffs in all eight of his seasons in Sacramento and advanced to the Western Conference Finals in 2002.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver released a statement Monday honoring Adelman’s legacy.

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“Rick Adelman was one of the most respected and accomplished coaches in the history of the NBA,” Silver said.

“Following his NBA playing career, Rick turned to coaching where his leadership, innovation and genuine love for basketball left a lasting impression on generations of players and fellow coaches over his nearly 30-year run. He was a brilliant strategist and teacher of the game, and an even better person. I send my deepest condolences to Rick’s family and many friends throughout the league.”

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Adelman is survived by his wife of 56 years, Mary Kay, their six children (including Nuggets coach David Adelman) and 12 grandchildren.

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COLLEGE STATION, Texas — As Augie Lopez trotted around the bases late Monday night, the small contingent of USC fans could finally be heard at Blue Bell Park.

With one towering blast to right field, the Trojans’ designated hitter silenced Texas A&M’s rowdy 12th Man.

Lopez’s three-run home run helped the Trojans beat Texas A&M 7-1 to reach the NCAA super regionals for the first time in 21 years.

Lopez silenced most of the sellout crowd of 7,042, making it easy to hear USC fans serenading him during the College Station Regional Final.

“Augie! Augie! Augie!” USC fans chanted after Lopez returned to the dugout.

It took a while, but the offense showed up to propel USC to the Chapel Hill Super Regional against North Carolina. The 12-time national champions advanced out of a regional for the first time since they played against Oregon State in the 2005 super regionals.

“I think this year getting to a super is special,” said coach Andy Stankiewicz, who is in his fourth season leading the Trojans. “This is a special place. USC, I’m telling you, it’s different. …

“We want to put a nice name back on USC baseball. That’s been part of the plan since we got here. We knew it was going to take time.”

The Trojans (47-16) placed six players on the all-tournament team. Lopez was joined by catcher Isaac Cadena, second baseman Abbrie Covarrubias, third baseman Kevin Takeuchi, outfielders Andrew Lamb and Walter Urbon and pitcher Andrew Johnson.

“Yeah, I could hear them,” said Lopez, who was named the most outstanding player of the College Station Regional. “I think the rest of the ballpark went pretty silent, but I knew my family was up there. And I could always hear them no matter where we’re playing. So it’s always great to hear the crowd having our back.”

Until Lopez’s blast, Texas A&M right-hander Clayton Freshcorn had slowed down a USC offense that had scored 48 runs combined while winning three consecutive games out of the losers’ bracket, including 14 on Sunday night against Texas A&M (41-16), to force the winner-take-all final.

USC right-hander Grant Govel, who had thrown 89 pitches over 5⅔ innings on Friday, retired the first seven Aggies before Bear Harrison hit a solo home run in the third.

Govel held the Aggies to three hits and one run over four innings with four strikeouts. Chase Herrell followed with 3⅔ scoreless innings while scattering three hits and striking out two. Sax Matson added one-third of an inning.

USC closer Adam Troy, who grew up in the Houston suburbs, pitched a scoreless ninth with his family cheering in the stands three days after he gave up a winning home run.

“We wanted to get on the board early, and we didn’t,” Texas A&M coach Michael Earley said. “They did a good job. I thought we hit some balls hard, but maybe not enough. They pitched really well.”

The Aggies ran out a threat in the fourth. Chris Hacopian drew a leadoff walk. Ben Royo kept the inning alive with a two-out single to left. Jorian Wilson followed with a single to shallow right-center field. Covarrubias was positioned perfectly to field the ball in the outfield, but his throw to first wasn’t in time.

Fortunately for the Trojans, Adrian Lopez alertly threw home to easily nail Hacopian by several feet to end the inning.

Covarrubias tied the score 1-1 with an RBI single to left-center in the fifth. One out later, Covarrubias stole second. Augie Lopez broke the tie with a single to right-center.

Two innings later, Lopez crushed his three-run blast. The Trojans added two more runs in the eighth.

“We had our fans, our parents right here,” Stankiewicz said. “They got that little section in the corner. They were outnumbered. That’s part of it too. We want to make them proud. They came a long way to watch their boys play baseball and support us.

“That’s a rewarding feeling when our fans can come in here and sit in the stands. They’re outnumbered. They try like crazy to cheer. This is a cool moment for them too. We’re happy that they can celebrate this with us.”