Businessman found guilty of defrauding former NBA star Dwight Howard of millions of dollars to buy the WNBA team

NEW YORK (AP) — A Georgia businessman was found guilty Friday of defrauding former NBA star Dwight Howard of millions of dollars in a bogus scheme to buy the WNBA team Atlanta Dream.

The jury returned its verdict against Calvin Darden Jr. Friday afternoon after a trial in New York City. Darden was also found guilty of defrauding former NBA forward Chandler Parsons in a separate scheme.

Howard – one of the NBA's most dominant centers at the peak of his 18-year professional career – testified during the trial that Darden tricked him into giving him $7 million by convincing him it was an investment in the purchase of the Dream. In fact, a three-person group of investors, including former player Renee Montgomery, purchased the team in 2021.

When a prosecutor asked him if he would get anything in return for his $7 million, Howard testified that he was “slapped in the face.”

Prosecutors said Darden also conspired with a sports agent to entice Parsons, who had a nine-year NBA career, to send $1 million that would support the development of James Wiseman, who is currently in the NBA plays.

Darden's conviction came eight years after he was sentenced to a year in prison for posing as his successful father in a failed attempt to buy Maxim magazine. In that case, Darden received leniency by cooperating with prosecutors against other defendants in the case.

This time, however, Darden rejected two offers from the government to plead guilty and went to trial.

Prosecutors expect he will face between 11 and 14 years in prison when he is sentenced early next year.

After the sentencing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Meade requested that Darden be jailed immediately, saying he had not learned his lesson since the 2016 case, but Judge Vernon S. Broderick ruled that he could remain free on bail for now.

Howard was an eight-time All Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year. He played for seven franchises, most notably the Orlando Magic – who took him No. 1 overall in the 2004 draft – and the Los Angeles Lakers, where he won his only NBA title during the pandemic-affected 2019-20 season won. Parsons played with Houston, Dallas, Memphis and Atlanta.

The Atlanta Dream was co-owned by former Republican U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler but was pressured to sell after she clashed with players over their opposition to the league's racial justice initiatives. Dream Players urged people to vote for their Democratic opponent, now US Senator Raphael Warnock.

During closing arguments Thursday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Thompson said the evidence that Darden “committed these crimes is overwhelming.”

Prosecutors said Darden spent at least $6.1 million of the $7 million he received from Howard. This included spending $500,000 on two cars; $110,000 for a piano; $765,000 for a down payment on a $3.7 million home; $90,000 on luxury watches and another half a million dollars on home improvements, in addition to the hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on art.

Prosecutors said they planned to seize all of Darden's assets, including his Atlanta home, along with luxury cars, art and jewelry.

Darden's lawyer insisted that his client would not commit any further fraud and was needed by his family.

Darden's father, Cal Darden, is a former senior vice president of operations at Atlanta-based United Parcel Service Inc. who served on the boards of several large companies. Darden's attorney, Xavier Donaldson, argued that his client never identified himself as his father to the athletes and accused prosecutors of trying to get the jury to use “guesswork, speculation and unreasonable inferences” to reach a guilty verdict reach.