Former Seattle SuperSonics guard Desmond Mason was arrested on Thursday on allegations of theft. The story dates back to a couple, Ryan and Cheryl Clemmons, who filed a police report against him with the Melissa Police Department in January. They claimed to have reached out to the former NBA player in March 2025 to have a jersey framed. They paid him nearly $10,000 for the job. Mason initially stayed in touch with the pair, but soon things changed.

The 2001 Slam Dunk Contest winner sent pictures of the jersey being framed in April. But he then went MIA for months. That concerned the Clemmons, who in January 2026 only heard excuses from Mason about their sports memorabilia and authentication documents, valued at approximately $40,000. Having gone months without retrieving their property, they registered the case with the Melissa PD, after which a warrant for Mason’s arrest was issued in February.

“Investigators say Mason was apprehended in Bricktown and transported to the Oklahoma County Detention Center (OCDC). However, police say Mason was not immediately booked into jail due to a medical issue,” according to News9. “OCPD says Mason was taken to a local hospital for treatment before being returned to the jail… Mason is being held on ‘flight to avoid,’ which usually describes someone attempting to flee across state or international lines to avoid prosecution.”

This is not the first time Mason has ended up in jail, having been taken into custody for contempt of court stemming from his divorce proceedings with his ex-wife, Andrea Mason, according to The New York Post.

What does Desmond Mason do now?

Desmond Mason had a successful career in the NBA. Drafted 17th overall by the Seattle SuperSonics in 2000, the athletic forward made a statement from the get-go. He won the Dunk Contest as a rookie. Desmond Mason had his best season with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2005. He averaged a career-high 17.2 points and 2.7 assists per game. Mason was regarded as a top 6MOY candidate, finishing in the top ten twice in his first six years in the league.

Mason played 10 years in the NBA before turning to his creative passion. He majored in studio art while studying at Oklahoma State. As a rookie, he sold his first painting to then-Commissioner David Stern for $500. “I was really the only artist-athlete at the time. He thought it was interesting,” said the Texas native.

“When I was growing up in a bad neighborhood with drugs and violence, art was my getaway,” Mason once explained, who took ceramics in school and used the brown paper bags that covered his textbooks as his cheap canvases.

His art, termed abstract expressionism, has been on display in New York. Mason also sold his work to the likes of George Clooney and businessman David Gupta. Hence, it’s a huge surprise to see the father of three have trouble with the law despite seemingly having a successful post NBA career.