NBA mandates Cuban to donate US$10M to women's groups

Investigation into workplace conduct finds ‘disturbing, heartbreaking’ evidence

NBA mandates Cuban to donate US$10M to women's groups
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban yells during overtime against the Portland Trail Blazers at American Airlines Center on March 20, 2016. The Mavs beat the Trail Blazers 132-120. Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports/Reuters

Dallas Mavericks billionaire owner Mark Cuban will donate US$10 million women's leadership and anti-domestic violence groups the NBA revealed Wednesday as the findings of an independent investigation into workplace conduct were revealed.

The probe found evidence of "disturbing and heartbreaking" workplace misconduct by current and former members of the Mavericks' organization, the NBA revealed.

In a joint statement released Wednesday, the league detailed findings after an investigation that lasted several months following the bombshell Sports Illustrated report that revealed a series of harassment allegations against former team president and CEO Terdema Ussery, two domestic violence incidents involving former team reporter Earl K. Sneed and a series of misconduct incidents by former ticket sales employee Chris Hyde.

Ex-New Jersey Attorney General Anne Milgram headed the inquiry that revealed 15 women within the Mavericks' organization were victims of harassment by Ussery that included "inappropriate comments, touching, and forcible kissing."

Hyde was found by investigators to have engaged in several examples of "improper workplace conduct" that included inappropriate sexual comments to women, shared and viewed pornographic images and videos, unwanted sexual advances and violent outbursts toward colleagues.

The investigation also alleged that the ex-Mavs.com writer Sneed perpetrated two separate acts of domestic violence, with one coming against a team employee.

The league said the independent investigation interviewed over 200 witnesses, and none said they informed Cuban about the conduct of Ussery, a one-time rising star in 18 years with the franchise who left the organization in 2015. Cuban was not mentioned by any witnesses as having direct knowledge of any improper behavior, matching his denials since the SI story went public in February.

Nonetheless, the league concluded that no one within Mavs management helped curtail any misbehaviour by its employees, creating a culture where violations continued to fester without adequate protection and consequences.

"The findings of the independent investigation are disturbing and heartbreaking and no employee in the NBA, or any workplace for that matter, should be subject to the type of working environment described in the report," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said, per the statement. "We appreciate that Mark Cuban reacted swiftly, thoroughly and transparently to the allegations first set forth in Sports Illustrated — including the immediate hiring of Cynthia Marshall as CEO to effect change, but as Mark has acknowledged, he is ultimately responsible for the culture and conduct of his employees."

Per the announcement, the league also mandated that the team improve and implement "Respect in the Workplace" for all staff members, including Cuban. In addition, the Mavericks are required to submit quarterly reports to the NBA office with updates and recommendations to its related human resources policies.

In the weeks after the SI story was published, the Mavericks hired Cynthia Marshall, former chief diversity officer and vice president of human resources at AT&T, as the team's new CEO with the purpose of transforming the internal culture in the organization.

The league cited Marshall's immediate directives in helping halt some of the alleged misconduct that was overlooked in the past. Marshall, who said upon her hiring that she was "disgusted" by SI's story, emphasized three main focuses to address the franchise's issues: an independent investigation, cultural transformation and operational effectiveness.

"I really want to see us as a model of how to respond to this," Marshall said. "This is going on all around the country. I want us to be a model."

Since coming aboard, the NBA said Wednesday that the team has added and replaced several leadership posts within the franchise, including hiring a new head of human resources, a chief ethics and compliance officer, a head of diversity and inclusion and a new general counsel.

Field Level Media

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