Last season did not go the way that Kendrick Nunn or the Los Angeles Lakers thought it would. After being signed by the Lakers for the taxpayer mid-level exception, Nunn would never touch the floor due to a bone bruise that would keep him out for the entire season.
With one more year remaining on his contract, Nunn is surely spending this offseason preparing himself to deliver good on the contract the Lakers signed him to. Unfortunately for him, he now has an off-court issue to deal with as well.
According to Jason Morrin of Conductdetrimental.com, Nunn is being sued by photographer Steven Mitchell for copyright infringement over a picture taken during Nunn’s time with the Miami Heat:
On June 30, 2022, Los Angeles Lakers’ guard Kendrick Nunn was sued in Florida District Court for copyright infringement. The plaintiff, a professional photographer named Steven Mitchell, alleges that Nunn deliberately removed his explicit attribution and credit that accompanied the original image. Mitchell licensed his sports photographs primarily through Imagn Content Services, a division of the USA Today Media Network.
At the time of the alleged injury, Nunn was playing for the Miami Heat. Mitchell was hired to photograph Heat players, and he did so at a pre-season event on September 30, 2019. Mitchell claims that Nunn obtained a photo of his from that day and posted it on Facebook and Instagram without his permission.
Mitchell seeks $150,000 in statutory damages, punitive and actual damages, and an injunction to have the photo taken down.
This is definitely something that Nunn would rather not have to deal with, but photographers expect to receive credit for their work and if Nunn did indeed do what was outlined, it makes sense that Mitchell would go this route.
Ideally for Nunn, he will be able to have this situation handled in a timely fashion so he can focus on having a great season and helping the Lakers’ turnaround after last years’s disappointment. Hopefully this won’t affect his offseason, but he will certainly want to put this behind him as quickly as possible.
Nunn picks up player option for 2022-23 season
Nunn is back under contract with the Lakers this upcoming season because he picked up his player option for his second year for around $5 million.
This was always the expectation, especially after Nunn didn’t play at all last season. His hope is that he will be able to remind everyone what he is capable of this season, but there remains the chance that he is dealt away as he is one of the few trade assets the Lakers possess.
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