Joshua Primo #

Introduction #

Joshua Primo, a 12th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft who had been one of the league’s most promising young guards, was waived by the San Antonio Spurs on October 28, 2022.[] The release, which stunned the NBA, came after Primo issued a statement saying he was seeking mental health treatment, and it was followed by reports that he had allegedly exposed himself to several women. Primo’s lawyer denied any wrongdoing, and a district attorney’s office ultimately declined to bring charges, but the incident ended his tenure with the Spurs, led to an unpaid NBA suspension the following season, and became one of the more painful “cancellation” stories of the 2022-23 NBA cycle.

Background Information #

Primo was born in 2002 and is a Canadian who grew up in Scarborough, Ontario, before attending Huntington Prep high school in Huntington, West Virginia.[] He played college basketball at Alabama in 2020-21, where he earned SEC All-Freshman Team honors, and was selected 12th overall by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2021 NBA Draft. He began his NBA career with the Spurs, with a stint in the G League with the Austin Spurs, and was the youngest player in the league during the 2021-22 season.

Ahead of the incident, Primo had shown flashes during his rookie season and the 2022-23 preseason, and the Spurs had exercised the third-year option on his contract earlier in October 2022 — which made the October 28 release all the more surprising.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation #

On October 28, 2022, the Spurs announced they had waived the 19-year-old.[] In a statement released by ESPN through Adrian Wojnarowski, Primo said he was seeking mental health treatment due to a “previous trauma.” The next day, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne reported that Primo’s release “stemmed from multiple alleged instances of Primo exposing himself to women,” and The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that a former Spurs female employee had made the allegation.

Spurs CEO R.C. Buford issued a statement on the situation, saying, “It is our hope that, in the long run, this decision will serve the best interest of both the organization and Joshua.” In November 2022, the Spurs’ consulting psychologist, Dr. Hillary Cauthen — represented by the law firm Buzbee, which had also represented the accusers in the Deshaun Watson sexual-misconduct lawsuits — filed a lawsuit against Primo and the team, alleging that Primo had exposed himself to her multiple times, and a criminal complaint was filed. Primo’s lawyer, William J. Briggs II, issued a statement denying any wrongdoing, asserting that any exposure was unwitting and that the accuser was not acting in good faith. On December 8, 2023, District Attorney Joe Gonzales announced his office would not bring charges of indecent exposure.

Public Reaction and Consequences #

The release was widely reported as a shock, given Primo’s age and his position in the Spurs’ future.[] The incident drew intense public scrutiny, with much of the coverage focused on the allegations, the team’s decision, and Primo’s mental-health statement. Primo’s lawyer’s denial and the later decision by the district attorney’s office not to bring charges introduced an element of disputed factual record into the story, even as the civil lawsuit by the psychologist proceeded.

On September 29, 2023 — after Primo had signed with the Los Angeles Clippers — the NBA suspended him for four games without pay on the grounds that he had exposed himself to women, a move that kept the incident in the league’s disciplinary record for a full year.

Current Status #

As of the coverage, Primo was no longer with the Spurs or the Clippers. After his unpaid four-game suspension and a two-way contract that the Clippers converted to a standard deal on November 15, 2023, he was waived by the Clippers on April 13, 2024, and briefly signed with — and waived by — the Chicago Bulls in October 2024. He has since moved to European professional basketball, with the 2026-27 season reported with BC Parma of the VTB United League. The civil lawsuit brought by the former Spurs psychologist, and the earlier decision not to bring criminal charges, remain the key unresolved legal threads from the incident.

Impact on Their Career/Life #

The incident cut short what had been built as a promising early career for a lottery pick and one of the NBA’s youngest players, and it left a public, disputed stain on a record that had not yet had time to develop.[] Primo’s own framing — that he was seeking mental-health treatment after “previous trauma” — and his lawyer’s denial of wrongdoing mean the public story remains, in part, a matter of contested allegations rather than an established finding. The unpaid suspension and the civil lawsuit compounded the career disruption, and his move from the NBA to European professional basketball marks how far the incident pushed him from the trajectory his draft position had suggested.