Mavericks star Kristaps Porzingis accused of sexual assault hours after tearing ACL, report says

Kristaps Porzingis is under investigation for sexual assault.

The Mavericks star is said to have raped a neighbor just hours after he tore his ACL in 2018, according to a report from the New York Post.

The woman was invited to Porzingis' home after he returned from the game, the report stated, citing law enforcement sources.

"The woman — who is in her 20s and also lived in the building — told cops the NBA star visited her apartment at around 2 a.m., and that she accepted his invitation to go back to his [penthouse].
"Once inside, the towering, 7-foot-3 Latvian allegedly held her down and raped her, she told cops, according to sources.
"The NYPD’s Special Victims Division has taken over the case and is investigating, the sources said."

One high-ranking NYPD told the New York Post that the woman is "believable."

The attack allegedly occurred on Feb. 7, 2018. The woman said she remained quiet for so long because Porzingis offered monetary compensation of $68,000 for her brother's college tuition.

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said the team's personnel has been "instructed by federal authorities not to comment" in an email to the New York Post.

Porzingis' attorney released a statement later Saturday and denied the allegations. He also said they had already referred the case to federal authorities in December 2018 due to the "accuser's extortionate demands."

"We are aware of the complaint that was made against Mr. Porzingis on Friday and unequivocally deny the allegations," Roland G. Riopelle said. "We made a formal referral to federal law enforcement on December 20th, 2018, based on the accuser's extortionate demands. We also alerted the National Basketball Association months ago and they are aware of the ongoing investigation of the accuser by federal law enforcement. We cannot comment further on an ongoing federal investigation. Please refer any questions to the Federal Bureau of Investigation or the National Basketball Association."

Porzingis was traded to Dallas by the Knicks this past February.

According to an ESPN report, which cited unidentified league sources, in a call finalizing the trade, New York informed Dallas of the rape allegation. The report also confirmed what Riopelle said in his statement regarding the league's knowledge of the allegations.

On the February trade call to finalize the Dallas-New York deal, the Knicks informed the Mavericks of the pending rape allegation against Kristaps Porzingis, league sources tell ESPN. The league office had been previously made aware of the allegations.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 31, 2019