Luke Walton being sued for alleged sexual assault

Luke Walton, the new Sacramento Kings coach and former Los Angeles Lakers coach, has been accused of sexual assault by former Spectrum SportsNet LA host Kelli Tennant.

In a lawsuit filed Monday, Tennant alleges that Walton assaulted her at the Casa Del Mar Hotel in Santa Monica, Calif., while he was an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors.

No date was given for the alleged assault, but the suit says it happened after the publication of a book written by Tennant, for which Walton wrote a foreword. The book was published in 2014.

Walton was a mentor to Tennant, the lawsuit says, and she came to the hotel to give him a copy of the book. He invited her to his room so as not to be in the public eye, according to the suit.

The lawsuit alleges that Walton suddenly “pinned Ms. Tennant on the bed, placing his hips and legs over her body.” He then “began forcing kisses on her neck, face and chest.” She yelled for him to stop and tried to free herself as Walton groped her breasts and groin area. Eventually, the suit said, he relented.

“She was afraid she was about to be raped,” the suit stated.

“We are aware of the report and are gathering additional information,” the Kings said in a statement. “We have no further comment at this time.”

Walton coached the Lakers the last three seasons before he and the team mutually agreed to part ways earlier this month. The Kings hired him two days later.

“This alleged incident took place before Luke Walton was the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers,” the Lakers said in a statement. “At no time before or during his employment here was this allegation reported to the Lakers. If it had been, we would have immediately commenced an investigation and notified the NBA. Since Luke Walton is now under contract to another team, we will have no further comment.”

Neither the Warriors, Walton nor Spectrum SportsNet immediately responded to requests for comment.

Attorney Garo Mardirossian, who represents Tennant, said he would not disclose further information about her allegations until a news conference. He declined to disclose whether she reported the alleged sexual assault to police.

The lawsuit notes that while Tennant did not make the allegations public until now, she had told others about the alleged assault.

Los Angeles Times’ Richard Winton contributed to this report.