by Former Spurs guard Joshua Primo is reportedly under investigation for allegations of indecent exposure following a lawsuit filed Thursday by former team psychologist Dr. Hillary Cauthen in Bexar County, Texas.
According The AthleteThe Bexar County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Friday that it launched an investigation into Primo after contacting Dr. Cauthen, who claims the Spurs ignored and tried to cover up her reports about the 19-year-old’s actions.
In the suit, Dr. Cauthen said Primo exposed his genitals to her nine times during their one-on-one private sessions, prompting her to make “multiple complaints” to the group’s leadership. Dr. Cauthen said she first reported Primo to team management in January after she began her tenure with the team in September 2021, according to the suit.
The Spurs waived Primo on October 28. According to the lawsuit, the team released the 19-year-old because of at least two other exposure incidents involving Primo that allegedly occurred in Nevada and Minnesota.
“Dr. Hillary Cauthen, a licensed clinical psychologist, lost her dream job because the Spurs organization ignored her repeated reports of indecent exposure by defendant Joshua Primo. the suit says. “Instead of acting on Dr. Cauthen’s reports, the Spurs ignored her complaints, hoping the organization could ignore and then cover up Primo’s actions.”
On Thursday, Dr. Cauthen and her attorney Tony Buzbee held a press conference announcing the lawsuit against the Spurs and Primo and confirmed that a criminal complaint had been filed on multiple counts of indecent exposure.
The lawsuit also alleges that Dr. Cowten met with several members of the San Antonio organization, including Spurs general manager Brian Wright, in March, though he says “nothing was done about Primo’s behavior.” She also reportedly met with Spurs deputy general counsel Brandon James and head of human resources Kara Allen in May, who she says informed her that Primo would continue to participate in team activities despite her complaints.
In June, James and Allen reportedly informed Dr. Couthen said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich “knew of her complaint and her allegations and that he wanted to do right by her.” According to his Tom Orsborne San Antonio Express-Newsit’s the only time Popovich is mentioned in the lawsuit.
William J. Briggs II, Primo’s attorney; responded to the lawsuit Thursday in a statement maintaining his client’s innocence. At the time of his release, Primo said he was “seeking help to deal with past trauma” he had suffered and that he would “focus on my mental health treatment more fully.” ESPN and The Athlete reported less than a day later that the Spurs had released Primo over sexual harassment allegations.
“[Primo] now he is being victimized by his former team-appointed sports psychologist who is playing on ugly stereotypes and racist fears for her own financial gain,” Briggs wrote. “In an act of betrayal against her young client, Dr. Cauthen, who is 40, falsely claims Josh Primo exposed himself to her during her numerous therapy sessions. The claims of Dr. Cauthen is either complete fabrication, crude embellishment, or sheer fantasy. Josh Primo never intentionally exposed himself to her or anyone else and was not even aware that his private parts were visible outside of his training shorts.’
“Josh Primo is at the start of a promising career and is devastated by these false allegations and his release from Spurs,” the statement continued. “He looks forward to clearing his name and moving forward with his NBA career.”
