​LAS VEGAS – Adam Silver didn’t expect to still be answering questions about the Clippers, Kawhi Leonard, and failed startup Aspiration in July 2026.“It’s gone on longer than I would have hoped,” Silver said of the NBA’s investigation into the relationship between the three parties. “There’s no question about that.”AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe NBA commissioner met with media on Tuesday after the annual Board of Governors meeting at Summer League. Silver is hoping for a ruling on whether the organization paid star player Kawhi Leonard through Aspiration as a way to circumvent the league’s salary cap.A month ago, Silver said before the NBA Finals that the investigation was “far along” and said he would like to “wrap it up” in the near future.Hours before Silver spoke, The Athletic reported that the league investigation has expanded into a potential second endorsement deal Leonard had with another company.“My timeline remains this summer,” Silver said Tuesday night. “We all have an interest in wrapping this up. I’m hopeful it will wrap up this summer and that will continue to remain the goal here.”AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementUnder the CBA, Silver has the ability to fine the Clippers $7 million, strip the team of its draft picks, and void Leonard’s contract, among other penalties.Silver said Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, the law firm the league hired for the investigation, is in the process of going through the information they’ve gathered and drawing conclusions off of it.“I would hope this can be wrapped up—and needs to be wrapped up—before next season,” Silver said.Silver’s comments came less than a week after the trade between the Clippers and Raptors that would send Leonard back to Toronto was paused until the investigation concludes. The NBA did not intervene in the transaction, Silver said. The Raptors would have inherited any possible punishment to Leonard from the investigation, and both parties decided to wait.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“They chose not to live with that uncertainty, but that was well-known before the trade was proposed,” Silver said. It’s not clear why the announcement that the trade was on hold and the Raptors would inherit any sanction took so long after the deal.Silver said he spent time during the Board of Governors meeting with Trail Blazers governor Tom Dundon and his ownership group, which took control of the team in March.The Moda Center, where the team plays has been the center of a public battle between Dundon and the city of Portland as Dundon has said he won’t pay for any upgrades.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn June, Portland Mayor Keith Wilson publicly pleaded with the city council to sign off on as much as $120 million in municipal funding to renovate the arena. A day later, Dundon did nothing to reduce fears of relocation when he appeared at an event put on by the Portland Metro Chamber and told at