The Houston Rockets may be out of the playoffs, but James Harden can’t rest easy just yet. The Rockets All-Star is being sued by Moses Malone Jr., son of NBA legend Moses Malone, for damages resulting from a beating last summer allegedly orchestrated by Harden.
Malone is accusing Harden of paying four men, including the bouncer, Darian Blount, $20,000 to beat Malone and steal his jewelry outside the V Live Houston strip club around 2 a.m. on June 25, 2016. Four men, including Blount, were arrest for the assault; however, Harden was never arrested or charged with anything in relation to the incident.
The attack happened a little over one day after Malone took to Facebook to criticize Harden for charging $249 for his youth basketball camp, which Malone said excludes inner-city children from participating.
Malone’s lawyer, George Farah, claims that the post was referenced during the assault.
“All the stories that we’ve heard from all the witnesses were pretty consistent that James Harden was pretty upset about the Facebook post that was posted the night before the attack,” said Farah. “There were text messages between Moses and some of James Harden’s friends…We have a good trail of evidence that leads to James Harden’s involvement to this.”
The lawsuit claims that Blount was “acting on the orders of Defendant James Harden when he and his associates attacked [Malone],” and accuses Harden of paying Blount and associates “approximately $20,000 to put a hit on [Malone].”
Farah is in the process of putting together a panel of at least 10 witnesses who were at the club that night and can verify Harden’s involvement in the situation.
Harden’s attorney, Isiah Carey, noted that he’s dealt with this situation already and accused Moses of only coming after his client because the four men that did it don’t have any money.
“I am in Boston for depositions, so I haven’t seen the petition, but I have previously discussed Moses’s allegations with James and others, and I am totally comfortable that the allegations are untrue,” said Carey. “Unfortunately, I am afraid this is just another example of people shopping for a deep pocket when they find that the people actually responsible have no money.”
If it makes Malone feel any better, the 12 San Antonio Spurs beat Harden down in Game Six.