(Photo credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images)The Los Angeles Clippers claim owner Steve Ballmer was 'duped' into making investments with the now-bankrupt company at the center of an investigation into alleged salary cap circumvention. The team released a statement Thursday about its dealings with Aspiration, a sustainability business that Ballmer and the Clippers reportedly invested $118 million in from 2021-23. Ballmer has said he was defrauded by Aspiration and has denied allegations of circumventing the cap. The Clippers responded with a lengthy statement about the team's dealings with Aspiration. 'Some of those commitments were built into the sponsorship deal with Aspiration -- totally separate of the investment in the company -- and we made payments to Aspiration until the company was unable to fulfill their responsibilities.