The Detroit Pistons fired their assistant general manager, Rob Murphy, following allegations of inappropriate conduct towards a former employee, according to The Detroit News. The Pistons said that they found enough evidence to justify his termination after an external investigation conducted by a national law firm. Murphy had been placed on leave since October while the investigation was ongoing.
Details were just released of the Pistons organization being sued alongside Rob Murphy with some truly disturbing allegations of sexual harassment, intimidation and assault.
— Sean Corp (@sean_corp) May 4, 2023
A lawyer representing Murphy’s former executive assistant, DeJanai Raska, identified her as the accuser and said she intends to file a lawsuit against Murphy and the Pistons for abuse and harassment. Raska claimed that Murphy sexually assaulted her twice and harassed her verbally, warning her not to approach the human resources department.
DeJanai Raska — Rob Murphy's former executive assistant — filed a lawsuit against the Detroit Pistons today.
Raska came forward to @freep's Tresa Baldas about Murphy's months-long sexual harassment and abuse, leading to his suspension and recent firing.https://t.co/akNwQKiY23
— Offseason O (@omarisankofa) May 4, 2023
In an interview with the Detroit Free Press, Raska stated that Murphy groomed her with inappropriate conversations and isolated and manipulated her, saying that the Pistons’ human resources department did not want her to keep her job and that he was the only one ‘protecting’ her employment. Raska claimed that she was turned into a personal assistant nanny for Murphy and his teenage son instead of the duties described in the job posting.
Raska said that Murphy sexually assaulted her twice, once when she stayed the night at his house to watch his son while he was away scouting:
“He then got in front of me and pushed me down on his bed and tried to engage in the beginning of some kind of sexual activity. So I’m literally trying to push my body up because he’s on top of me. I’m like ‘Hey Rob, I don’t want to do this,’ and he then — this is disgusting to say, but I thought of anything and I’m like, ‘You know I’m on my period,’ and [he] was like ‘DJ, it’s just a little blood, we’re adults, you need to get out of your head.'”
Raska claimed that Murphy completed his investigation in December but was allowed to stay on paid leave until the Pistons were informed of her incoming lawsuit.
Who is Rob Murphy: From High School Athlete to Detroit Pistons Assistant General Manager and Beyond
Rob Murphy is a former basketball player, coach, and executive, born on September 19, 1972, in Detroit, Michigan. He attended Mumford High School in Detroit before moving to Wilberforce, Ohio, to attend Central State University, where he played basketball for four years.
Murphy began his career as a high school basketball coach and achieved considerable success, going 64-20 in two years. He later joined Kent State as an assistant coach in 2002 and then became the head coach at Eastern Michigan, where he went 166-155 in ten seasons.
After his coaching career, Murphy joined the Motor City Cruise, the Detroit Pistons’ G League affiliate, as president and general manager. In June 2022, he was promoted to the position of assistant general manager for the Pistons but was later fired due to workplace misconduct.
Apart from his career in basketball, Murphy is also the CEO and president of the Rob Murphy Foundation, which he founded in May 2014.
