NBA Stars Stand Trail For Beating Up Male Stripper. Yep.

Somewhat underreported around these parts, the trial of NBA players Gary Payton, Sam Cassell and Jason Caffey began yesterday in Toronto.

If you missed it, the three players are charged with assault and accused of beating up a male stripper in April 2003. Prosecutors say the players jumped out of a cab and attacked Adrian Cimpean — which is totally the name we'd imagine for a Toronto stripper, by the way — as he left a club with his fiancee. Cimpean, who says he is too emotionally distraught to strip since (we know how he feels), claims that the players called him the n-word during the beating, even though Cassell, Payton and Caffey are black and Cimpean is not. The trial is supposed to last all week; Raptors general manager Rob Babcock is expected to trade for Cimpean, pending a plea agreement.

Assault Accuser Ready To Sue [Toronto Star]