According to TMZ, Sacramento Kings head coach Luke Walton is the subject of a sexual assault suit from a reporter who claims he forced himself on her.
In legal documents obtained by TMZ, they show that sports reporter Kelli Tennant accused Walton of assaulting her in a hotel room back May 2017. She said Walton requested a meeting with her at his hotel after she wanted him to write a foreword to a book she was writing.
In the suit, Tennant says when she arrived at Walton’s hotel, he convinced her to come up to his room so they could discuss the book. She claims when they got up to his room, Walton suddenly pinned her to the bed, placing his hips and legs over her body. In the docs, Tennant claims Walton then began forcing kisses on her neck, face and chest. She claims she screamed for him to stop and tried to free herself, but he held her down, groped her breasts and groin, and rubbed his erection on her leg. She says he eventually relented and let her get up from the bed, but as she was walking towards the door to leave he grabbed her from behind and again forced his body up against hers.
The Sacramento Kings have also released a statement following the matter:
"We are aware of the report and are gathering additional information. We have no further comment at this time."
Walton spent the past three seasons as head coach of the Lakers before mutually parting ways after missing the playoffs for a third consecutive year under Walton. Just days later, Walton was officially hired as the Sacramento Kings head coach.
The Lakers have made a statement in response to the TMZ report:
“This alleged incident took place before Luke Walton was the Head Coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. At no time before or during his employment here was this allegation reported to the Lakers. If it had been, we would have immediately commenced an investigation and notified the NBA. Since Luke Walton is now under contract to another team, we will have no further comment.”
With all the info coming out, Luke Walton's attorney Mark Baute issues a statement regarding the reports coming out:
“Luke Walton retained me to defend him against these baseless allegations. The accuser is an opportunist, not a victim, and her claim is not credible. We intend to prove this in a courtroom.”