The Mavericks, in response to a Tuesday report from Sports Illustrated about inappropriate conduct in the workplace, issued a statement acknowledging some of the allegations.
There were no denials in the statement, which the Mavericks sent about an hour before SI put its story online.
The statement reads, in part: "The Dallas Mavericks have received information about behavior in our workplace that appears to have violated the organization's standards of conduct. It has been alleged that a former officer of the organization engaged in various acts of inappropriate conduct toward women over a period of years. This individual left the employment of the Mavericks nearly three years ago and the Mavericks have only learned of the scope of these complaints in the past days."
The statement did not include any names, but the SI investigative story said Terdema Ussery, who was the team's president for nearly two decades before he left in 2015, was the primary figure. As far back as 1998, the Mavericks conducted an internal investigation about Ussery after several female employees lodged complaints about inappropriate workplace behavior.
The results of that probe were not released and neither then-owner Ross Perot Jr. nor Ussery commented on the findings, other than Ussery saying: "It's been addressed."
The SI story stated that at least six former female employees spoke to the magazine about a corrosive workplace environment in the years leading up to Ussery leaving the organization. They said there were times when they did not feel safe.
Attempts to reach Ussery were unsuccessful Tuesday night and owner Mark Cuban declined to comment, although both men gave statements to the magazine.
SI stated that Ussery issued his statement to them on Tuesday that read in part: "I am deeply disappointed that anonymous sources have made such outright false and inflammatory accusations against me. During my career with the Mavericks, I have strived to conduct myself with character, integrity and empathy for others.
"During my nearly 20 year tenure with the Mavericks, I am not aware of any sexual harassment complaints about me or any findings by the organization that I engaged in inappropriate conduct. In fact, on multiple occasions I and other senior executives at the organization raised concerns _ both in person and in emails _ about other Mavericks employees who had engaged in highly inappropriate _ and in some cases, threatening _ sexual conduct. The organization refused to address these concerns, and I believe these misleading claims about me are part of an attempt to shift blame for the failure to remove employees who created an uncomfortable and hostile work environment within the Mavericks organization."
The Mavericks' statement went on to say that the organization has notified the NBA office and hired outside counsel to conduct an independent investigation, with emphasis on specific allegations related to the former employee.
The Mavericks also have suspended an employee whose job it was to receive and investigate such complaints, pending the outcome of the investigation, the statement said.
The SI story included this comment from Cuban: "I want to deal with this issue. I mean ... obviously there's a problem in the Mavericks organization and we've got to fix it. That's it. And we're going to take every step. It's not something we tolerate. I don't want it. It's not something that's acceptable. I'm embarrassed, to be honest with you, that it happened under my ownership, and it needs to be fixed. Period. End of story."
In a separate matter, the team also learned of a different employee who misled team officials about a previous domestic-violence incident. The employee was not identified, but Earl K. Sneed, who worked on the Mavericks' website, confirmed to The News that he had parted ways with the organization after seven years.
The statement said only that the employee "was not candid about the situation and has been terminated."
The Mavericks' statement reiterated that the situation will be addressed and that complying with the needs of any independent investigations will be paramount.
"There is no room for such conduct in the Mavericks' workplace _ or any workplace," the statement said. "The Mavericks will provide all necessary resources to ensure that every current and former employee receives appropriate support. We will also conduct comprehensive training through experts and take the necessary steps to ensure that our workplace is a safe, respectful and productive one for all Dallas Mavericks employees. We are committed _ to our employees, our team and our fans _ to meet the goals of dignity, security and fairness that define the Dallas Mavericks."
