DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks submitted a formal response in Dallas County court to former general manager Donnie Nelson’s lawsuit Thursday that alleged owner Mark Cuban fired him in retaliation for reporting Cuban’s chief of staff sexually harassed and sexually assaulted Nelson’s nephew during a job interview in 2020.
The organization’s legal response to Nelson’s lawsuit “and its utterly fictitious Petition” accuses Nelson of extortion for up to $100 million against the Mavericks.
In the filing, the Mavericks said: “Nelson demanded that he receive, in effect blackmail payment in exchange for his promises not to expose the sexual orientation of a former Mavericks front-office employee or to assert other claims which he promised would embarrass Defendants and certain individuals, including Mark Cuban.
“When his demands were not met, and his own conduct was revealed, Nelson’s desperation intensified.”
The response says Nelson approached Cuban in August 2020 with an allegation that Cuban’s chief of staff, Jason Lutin, sexually harassed and assaulted Nelson’s 29-year-old nephew in February 2020 during All-Star Weekend in Chicago.
In his lawsuit Thursday, Nelson alleged he connected his nephew, who was not named in either legal filing, with Lutin to discuss working in the sports and entertainment industry in February 2020 and that Lutin invited his nephew up to his hotel room afterward, where the sexual harassment and assault occurred.
Lutin denied the accusations in an email to ESPN.
The Mavericks’ response says Nelson told Cuban he could make the allegations “go away” in exchange for a long-term contract extension as president of basketball operations and general manager.
After Cuban told Nelson to contact the police, “Nelson assured Defendants there had not been an assault,’” the response said.
The Mavericks said they informed the league office — as per protocol after the organization’s 2018 sexual misconduct scandal — and retained an independent outside law firm to conduct a full investigation with full cooperation from every organization employee except for Nelson.
The response said Nelson’s nephew never asserted to have been “assaulted” and that Nelson’s nephew and Lutin continued to “frequently talk and text” for six months after their initial meeting in February 2020.
“After the investigation concluded,” the countersuit says, “the matter was closed to Nelson’s nephew’s satisfaction.”
Nelson remained in his position with the Mavericks until June 2021, when Cuban fired him following the team’s first-round playoff exit. The response Friday listed included poor job performance, extended focus on outside business ventures and “failure to comply with internal human resources policy” as reasons for Nelson’s dismissal.
On November 16, 2021, the response says Nelson’s attorney sent a demand letter to the Mavericks “seeking a significant cash settlement” and made clear in subsequent discussions that Nelson wanted $100 million or he would reveal the sexual orientation of the former Mavericks executive and “also disclose other information that Nelson believed would greatly embarrass the team and numerous individuals, including Mr. Cuban.”
The response says Nelson tried to increase pressure on the Mavericks by filing an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint Dec. 1, 2021.
The NBA said Thursday it was aware of the Mavericks’ investigation and reasons for firing Nelson.
In bold letters in the response, the Mavericks said “Nelson repeatedly refused to engage in any resolution that asked him to represent that he had not engaged in any criminal conduct relating to his allegations [or] his adult nephew’s allegations.”
It concludes: “Nelson’s lawsuit is nothing more than the culmination of his long-running scheme to obscure his own failure as an NBA General Manager and businessman, conceal his own personal misconduct, and repulsively attempt to profit from threatening to ‘out’ a former Mavericks employee.”
