FORMER NBA star Byron Scott has been accused of sexually assaulting a high school student in a janitor’s closet 38 years ago.
The Los Angeles Lakers legend is now owning up to the alleged act, but gave a sick excuse for his behavior.
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Scott, now 64, was attending a Lakers team event at a private high school in Los Angeles in 1987 when he allegedly sexually assaulted Hayley Dylan in a locked closet when she was just 15.
The basketball star, who was married at the time, has now broken his silence after Dylan sued him for the disturbing crime.
“Our client is devastated by this complaint, a basketball event that took place in 1987,” Scott’s attorney, Linda Bauermeister, told Daily Mail.
“Our client believed the plaintiff to be over 18 and had no idea she would claim otherwise until 35 years later.
“He respects girls and women, and the claims have blindsided him and his family.”
Dylan, now 53, has accused Scott of sexual battery, sexual assault, false imprisonment, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
She has chosen to go public with her identity rather than remain anonymous in the 20-page filings.
Explosive court documents say Scott, who was 26 at the time, allegedly forced himself on Dylan at Campbell Hall School after he took her away from other adults at the school.
Dylan is also accusing Campbell Hall School, where she was a student at the time, of not protecting her from Scott.
She said she was taking a summer class while members of the Lakers team filmed a basketball video in the school’s gym.
Scott, a shooting guard, played for the Lakers from 1983 to 1993 and returned to the team from 1996 to 1997. He won three NBA championships with the team.
When bystanders were asked to leave the taping, Dylan claims Scott pointed at her and said, “She can stay.”
After Dylan got autographs and pictures with Scott, he reportedly asked her to have lunch with him.
When filming was finished, Scott then asked Dylan to give him a tour of the school, which is when the twisted assault allegedly occurred.
The lawsuit claims Scott found a janitor’s closet and “forcefully grabbed Hayley by the arm and pulled her inside the room.”
He then allegedly kissed her mouth as she asked, “What are you doing?”
Dylan claims Scott then pushed her down, took her shirt off, and tried to force her to perform oral sex on him.
She “pleaded for Scott to stop and tried to turn her head away from his erect penis,” according to the complaint.
He allegedly then stopped the attempted assault and allowed Dylan to get up and put her clothes back on before he unlocked the door.
They both left the closet as Dylan said her “mind was reeling,” and she felt scared and disoriented.
“In the years that followed Scott’s sexual assault and battery, Hayley suffered, and she continues to suffer, severe psychological and emotional distress, as well as feelings of embarrassment, loss of self-esteem, shame, and humiliation,” the lawsuit states.
Hayley is seeking damages of over $25,000 and a trial by jury.
Scott’s attorney hasn’t returned The U.S. Sun’s request for comment.
The Lakers star was married to his first wife, Anita Scott, at the time of the alleged assault. The former couple, who share three children, divorced in 2014.
He has been married to Cece Gutierrez since July 2020.
Scott was the Lakers head coach from 2014 to 2016.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673.