Kings, NBA begin sex-assault inquiry into coach Luke Walton

Posted April 25, 2019 7:00 am

By JOSH DUBOW

FILE - In this March 31, 2019, file photo, Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton looks on during the first half of an NBA basketball game in New Orleans. The Sacramento Kings have hired Luke Walton as their coach just days after he parted ways with the Los Angeles Lakers following three losing seasons. The Kings announced Monday, April 15, 2019, that Walton will replace Dave Joerger. (AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman, File) The Associated Press

The Sacramento Kings and the NBA began a joint investigation Thursday into allegations that coach Luke Walton sexually assaulted a woman.

The Kings and the league said they will be looking into the accusations from a lawsuit filed this week in Los Angeles by former sportscaster Kelli Tennant.

Walton's attorney, Mark Baute, has called the allegations "baseless" and says the coach will prove that in court.

The 31-year-old Tennant contends Walton attacked her when he was an assistant coach for the Golden State Warriors, which was from 2014 to 2016.

Tennant said she confided in people at the time but never filed charges because she was scared. Her lawyer, Garo Mardirossian, said because years had passed, he believed it would be difficult now to file a police report and put together a criminal case.

Tennant said Walton continued to harass her after he became coach of the Lakers and she was working as a broadcaster in Los Angeles for Spectrum SportsNet and SportsNet LA. She now does a wellness podcast.

Tennant said she considered the 39-year-old Walton, the son of Hall of Famer Bill Walton, to be a longtime friend and mentor. The coach had written the foreword to a 2014 book she had written and she went to give him a copy while he was at a Santa Monica hotel during a Warriors road trip to Los Angeles.

Tennant said Walton met her in the lobby and invited her to his room. After discussing the book, Tennant said Walton suddenly grabbed her, pinned her to the bed and forcibly kissed her. Tennant said that when she asked him to get off "he laughed at me."

Tennant said Walton relented and she started to leave the room when he grabbed her again and kissed her ears and neck. She said he finally stopped, laughed and said "good to see you" before she left.

The Kings investigatory team will be led by Sue Ann Van Dermyden and Jennifer Doughty. Van Dermyden is founding partner of the Sacramento law firm Van Dermyden Maddux and an expert on employment law. Doughty is a veteran investigator and senior associate attorney at Van Dermyden Maddux.

The NBA's investigatory team will be led by Elizabeth Maringer, the senior vice president and assistant general counsel of Integrity and Investigations. Previously, Maringer served 12 years as an assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

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FILE - In this March 12, 2019, file photo, Los Angeles Lakers coach Luke Walton gestures to players during the second half against of the team's NBA basketball game against the Chicago Bulls, in Chicago. The Sacramento Kings have hired Luke Walton as their coach just days after he parted ways with the Los Angeles Lakers following three losing seasons. The Kings announced Monday, April 15, 2019, that Walton will replace Dave Joerger.(AP Photo/Nuccio DiNuzzo, File) The Associated Press

Attorney Garo Mardirossian, left, pats the back of former sports reporter Kelli Tennant before the start of a news conference, Tuesday, April 23, 2019, in Los Angeles. Tennant filed the suit in Los Angeles County Superior Court on Monday, contending new Sacramento Kings NBA basketball coach Luke Walton assaulted her in a hotel room in Santa Monica while he was an assistant coach for the Golden State Warriors. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) The Associated Press

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