Confusion regarding the status of Los Angeles Lakers center DeMarcus Cousins’ unresolved domestic violence case in Alabama and the NBA’s role in the saga abounded Tuesday.
Cousins faces a third-degree domestic violence charge stemming from a threatening Aug. 23 phone call he allegedly made to the mother of his child, but the warrant on the misdemeanor charge has never been served, AL.com reported.
Cousins’ ex-girlfriend, Christy West, contends in the police report the alleged threatening comments were made during an argument over whether their son could attend Cousins’ Atlanta wedding the following day.
After Cousins' participation in Lakers Media Day last week, TMZ Sports checked in with the Mobile Police Department Tuesday in the player's hometown of Mobile, Alabama, for an update. The sports site then reported a police spokesperson "told us officials aren't hunting down Cousins because he's only facing a misdemeanor charge," but noted, "The NBA has reached out to us' to facilitate an official surrender."
League spokesman Michael Bass contradicted the report, however, telling AL.com, "It is categorically untrue that the NBA reached out to the Mobile Police Department to facilitate DeMarcus Cousins' surrender."
TMZ Sports amended its initial report just after 4 p.m. to note its NBA sources are "adamant" no one in the league office "reached out" to local authorities. A Mobile police spokesperson also clarified in the update that league officials had "previously reached out" to the department regarding Cousins' surrender.
According to AL.com, however, a police spokeswoman confirmed only that NBA officials made contact with local authorities but did not discuss terms of Cousins' potential surrender.
"I can confirm that the NBA called our detectives and was told to contact our Legal Department to discuss further," Mobile police spokeswoman Charlette Solis told AL.com.
Cousins, 29, signed a one-year deal with the Lakers in July before tearing his left ACL the next month. The injury is expected to sideline the center for the upcoming 2019-20 NBA season.
According to USA Today, the four-time NBA All-Star missed most of last season as a member of the Golden State Warriors while recovering from a January 2018 Achilles tear.
Los Angeles Lakers General Manager Rob Pelinka addressed Cousins’ situation Friday with the following Media Day statement: “I think the most important thing to say is the Lakers as an organization take allegations of domestic violence extremely seriously. That said, when allegations are made for any NBA player, the league takes over and handles that investigation. We’re going to abide by the league’s lead on this as that’s being investigated, and because it’s a legal matter, we can’t really speak any further about that right now. He’s a member of our roster and a part of the team, and we’ll just have to wait for guidance from the league on next steps."
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