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Ex-Mavericks CEO Terdema Ussery denies report of sexual misconduct

Tom Pennington / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Former Dallas Mavericks CEO Terdema Ussery has denied acts of sexual misconduct involving coworkers outlined in a Sports Illustrated expose.

SI released findings Tuesday of its investigation into misogyny and predatory sexual misconduct pervading the Mavs organization, specifically pertaining to Ussery, who served as CEO from 1997-2015.

Ussery refuted the report's findings, which included an incident during the 2010-11 season in which a Mavericks support staff employee said Ussery told her she was going to be "gang-banged" over the coming weekend. Ussery is also said to have put his hand on a female employee's thighs and repeatedly propositioned another for sex.

"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," Ussery said Tuesday in a statement to SI.

"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."

Ussery also blamed the organization for refusing to address concerns he said he raised about other coworkers who were engaged in inappropriate sexual conduct.

"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."

Sports Illustrated also delved into the employment history of Mavs beat writer Earl K. Sneed, who was involved in a domestic dispute with a girlfriend during the 2010-11 season, his first as the team's full-time beat writer. Sneed was charged with assault, a class A misdemeanor.

After Sneed pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of family violence assault and interference with emergency request, he dated a colleague, whom he hit during a 2014 dispute, according to multiple SI sources. The writer remained with the Mavericks following counseling, but could not be alone with female colleagues.

Sneed, who was ostensibly fired after SI published its story, said the publisher used inaccurate language in detailing the incidents.

"While both instances described in the report are damning and language used is not accurate, the two relationships described in the report are not something I am proud to have been a part of," Sneed said in a statement to The Dallas Morning News late Tuesday.

"... I also signed a contract stating that I would not have one-on-one contact or fraternize with female employees after the inaccurately described incident with my female co-worker, who was a live-in girlfriend," he revealed. "I abided by the details of that contract for four years, and received counseling during that period to avoid future instances."

Team owner Mark Cuban said he was unaware of the issues detailed in the story, but is now committed to resolving them.

"I want to deal with this this issue," Cuban said. "I mean, this is, I 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."

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