Why did Detroit Pistons fire Rob Murphy? Reason behind workplace misconduct investigation explored

The Detroit Pistons recently fired assistant general manager Rob Murphy. The move was made after an internal investigation into workplace misconduct with a former female employee.

Rob Murphy was with the team since May 2022. The investigation began when the former female employee made the claim of workplace misconduct. Murphy was placed on administrative leave in October and remained away from the team.

The Pistons released a statement regarding the firing of Murphy. It read,

“Mr. Murphy was recently terminated for violation of company policy and the terms of his employment agreement. The facts that gave rise to his termination surfaced during a review, assisted by a national law firm, of allegations made by a former employee.”

The details of the matter and investigation remain murky. The Pistons said in the statement,

"Because this is a personnel matter, no further details will be forthcoming at this time.”

This is a developing story. The accuser has since come out. Her name is DeJanai Raska, she worked as an executive assistant to Rob Murphy while he was at the Pistons.

Raska accuses Murphy of sexually harassing and abusing her for months while both were with the Pistons. According to Raska, he groped her private parts in front of her four-year-old daughter, grabbed her buttocks multiple times, subjected her to unwanted kissing, often told her she aroused him and said he wanted to "put a baby in her."

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What did Rob Murphy do before the assistant GM role?

Rob Murphy was named president of the Pistons G-league affiliate team last year. The team is called the Motor City Cruise. He then earned the promotion to a role in the Pistons front office shortly after. In his role as assistant GM, he oversaw the entire scouting department.

Before joining the Pistons organization, Murphy was a college basketball coach at Eastern Michigan. He coached at Eastern Michigan from 2011-2021. Before landing the job, Murphy spent time as an assistant coach at Kent State and Syracuse. Detroit Pistons GM Troy Weaver was also previously an assistant at Syracuse.

While at Eastern Michigan, he led the team to five winning seasons in his ten seasons. He won MAC Coach of the Year in 2012.