Businessman convicted of swindling $7 million from Dwight Howard in Atlanta Dream investment scam: Report
A businessman was reportedly convicted on Friday for an investment scam involving a fake purchase of the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream, swindling $7 million from retired NBA star Dwight Howard.
According to an Associated Press report, Calvin Darden Jr. was found guilty of running the scam. Prosecutors estimate he could face between 11 and 14 years in prison when sentenced early next year.
During the two-week trial, Dwight Howard testified against Darden.
Evidence revealed that Darden used $6.1 million of Howard's money to buy luxury items, including two cars (one a Lamborghini), $110,000 on a piano, $90,000 on watches and to help fund a $3.7 million home in Atlanta.
Darden was also convicted of defrauding former NBA forward Chandler Parsons out of $1 million. Despite the conviction, Darden remains free on bail for now.
The Atlanta Dream is currently owned by a group of investors: Larry Gottesdiener, Suzanne Abair, and Renee Montgomery, a former Dream player who made history as the first ex-WNBA player to become part-owner of a league team.
This ownership group took over the franchise in February 2021 after a controversial period under former co-owner and Republican senator Kelly Loeffler, who faced backlash for her political views and opposition to the league's social justice efforts.
Dwight Howard opens up about being scammed out of $7 million
In an episode of his podcast "Above the Rim with DH 12" in September, Dwight Howard explained how he realized he was being scammed when a different ownership group purchased the Atlanta Dream.
Howard referred to Darden as an agent he once trusted.
"He kept saying, 'Man, they won’t call me back now. I can’t get in contact with them.’ I was like, 'Man, you’re lying. What’s going on?’” Dwight Howard said.
“I really trusted this agent because he was my agent, so he had a duty to tell the truth and be honest with me. But these agents, these lawyers, all these people – they be scheming, they be lying, and they all have the same motive: to take from you.”
Howard, who earned more than $245 million in his NBA career, shared how being betrayed by someone he trusted deeply hurt and angered him.
“That one hurt. … My mental (state) was I wanted to find him and beat the hell out of him! I wanted to kill him,” Howard said.
This wasn't Darden’s first fraudulent scheme. In 2016, he was reportedly sentenced to a year in prison for impersonating his successful father in a failed attempt to buy Maxim magazine. He received a reduced sentence by cooperating with prosecutors in that case.