FAIRFIELD-SUISUN, CALIFORNIA
Who is Johnny Wilkes? A look at the man suing the Clippers and Jerry West. [Los Angeles Times :: BC-BKN-CLIPPERS-WILKES:LA]
LOS ANGELES There were two players from the Dorsey High boys basketball team who earned All-Southern-League honors in 1980.
Johnny Wilkes and Dennis Robertson.
Forty years later, Robertson has become a recognizable figure in the NBA as Clippers star Kawhi Leonard’s enigmatic “Uncle Dennis,” the man believed to have perhaps the biggest influence over the two-time NBA champions and Finals MVP.
Before this week, Wilkes was a virtual unknown an L.A.-native who had an unremarkable college career at Colorado and Cal State Fullerton, an international professional career in Japan, and whose post-playing career has included jobs in and out of sports.
Dec 17, 2020
The NBA has launched an investigation of the allegations surrounding Jerry West and the Clippers acquiring Kawhi Leonard,
Earlier this week, TMZ reported allegations concerning the recruitment of Leonard, who signed with the Clippers as a free agent in 2019.
West promised Johnny Wilkes, the president of Inthepaint Academy, $2.5 million for helping the Clippers sign Leonard, according to a lawsuit in the TMZ report.
Wilkes filed a lawsuit for breach of contract. According to TMZ, Wilkes met with West on April 10, 2019, at the Staples Center and informed the Clippers executive board member he had close ties to Leonard and Leonard s uncle, Dennis Robertson. After the two exchanged contact information, in June 2019, West asked Wilkes for help in getting Leonard to Los Angeles.