Suns owner Matt Ishbia.
Managers at the Michigan mortgage company owned by Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia have engaged in racist behavior, sexual harassment and bullying, according to an April 12 story from Bloomberg.
“More than two dozen people who have worked at Ishbia’s United Wholesale Mortgage in recent years described a high-pressure locker-room environment at the company’s Pontiac, Michigan, offices,” Polly Mosendz and Caleb Melty wrote. “Several said some underwriting managers treated Black workers differently from White employees. Others said leering and sexually offensive remarks were common among sales staff. Most asked not to be named citing fear of reprisals.”
United Wholesale Mortgage refuted Bloomberg’s report in a statement released to The Arizona Republic, the paper reported on April 14.
“Bloomberg’s portrayal of the culture at UWM is false and misleading. UWM has been completely transparent with Bloomberg, giving them hours of on-the-record interviews with UWM team members and executives, detailed answers to dozens of questions, and a personal tour of our 1M+ square-foot campus,” the statement said, according to The Republic.
“We are disappointed that, in the face of the overwhelming and detailed evidence of the real culture at UWM, Bloomberg chose to paint a sensationalized caricature of our company’s workplace environment,” the statement said, according to the paper. “UWM has operated for almost forty years and has employed close to 20,000 team members and we are proud of our people, our accomplishments, and our culture. Our record speaks for itself.”
Ishbia, who became the NBA’s newest owner in February after completing a record-breaking $4 billion sale, did not respond to request for comment from The Republic, the paper reported. The Bloomberg story said Ishbia himself has not been accused of using racial slurs or sexually harassing employees.
The Bloomberg report arrived days before Ishbia was to make his postseason debut as an NBA owner. The Suns will play the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the Western Playoffs on April 16.
Former Employees Say There Was Also Cocaine Use at Mat Ishbia’s Firm
According to Bloomberg, former employees also made claims of “repeated cocaine use” at the firm.
“Among those who encountered cocaine while working at UWM was Matt Hutchinson, who left the company in June 2021 after two and a half years, the last 15 months of which were spent working at home. He recalled attending a client event at a Topgolf location in Auburn Hills in December 2019, when he says a UWM manager invited him to do a bump of cocaine in front of an independent mortgage broker who worked with the company,” according to Bloomberg.
The NBA’s drug policy does not apply to owners.
Ex-Suns Owner Was Suspended by NBA for Similar Conduct
This type of behavior opened the door for Ishbia to buy the Suns in the first place after former Suns owner Robert Sarver, who sold the team to Ishbia, was accused of using a racial slur on multiple occasions in the Suns office. The NBA suspended Sarver last September.
“During his time with the Suns and Mercury, Sarver used the N-word at least five times ‘when recounting the statements of others,'” ESPN reported at the time. “There also were ‘instances of inequitable conduct toward female employees,’ the NBA said in its statement, including ‘sex-related comments’ and inappropriate comments on employees’ appearances.”
“The NBA commissioned an investigation after ESPN published a story in November 2021 detailing allegations of racism and misogyny during Sarver’s 17 years as owner. While the NBA stated that Sarver ‘cooperated fully with the investigative process,’ league sources told ESPN’s Baxter Holmes and Adrian Wojnarowski that he was unaccepting of the idea that he deserved a one-year suspension and a $10 million fine for his behavior. The punitive part of the process became largely acrimonious, sources said,” according to the outlet.