Pablo Torre's podcast broke the Clippers story — and just won journalism's highest honor for it The “Pablo Torre Finds Out” podcast won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in Audio Reporting on Monday, recognized for its deep-dive investigation into the finances of the Los Angeles Clippers and star player Kawhi Leonard. The Pulitzer judges described the project as a “pioneering and entertaining form of live podcast journalism” — words that sum up both the show’s ambition and its impact since launching in 2023.
The prize-winning report, published last September, alleged that the Clippers violated NBA salary cap rules involving a $28 million endorsement contract between Leonard and Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC — a California-based sustainability services company that has since gone bankrupt. The report triggered an ongoing NBA investigation, run by an outside firm. Leonard has denied any wrongdoing, saying he did not receive all of the money he was owed from the company. The Clippers have strongly denied that any rules were broken and said they welcomed the league’s investigation.
We are honored to have been named the winner of the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in Audio Reporting!
— Pablo Torre Finds Out · official X account, May 5, 2026
The company at the center of it all
Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC was not a peripheral player in the story. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer made a $50 million personal investment in Aspiration, and the company and the team announced a $300 million partnership in September 2021 — about a month after Leonard signed a four-year, $176 million extension with the Clippers. The team later ended its relationship with Aspiration after two years, saying the contract was in default. Aspiration’s co-founder, Joseph Sanberg, agreed to plead guilty after facing federal charges of wire fraud — prosecutors said he defrauded investors and lenders out of $248 million.
- Source: AP