Shawn Kemp pleads guilty in shooting incident

Former NBA star Shawn Kemp has pleaded guilty in his parking lot shooting case, according to TMZ Sports. A rep from the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s office told the outlet that Kemp appeared in court on Tuesday morning and entered a plea for a lesser charge of assault in the second degree.

Officers claimed that Kemp fired a gun during a dispute at a shopping mall parking lot in Tacoma, Washington, in March 2023. He was facing one count of assault in the first degree and is due back for sentencing on August 22.

How much jail time Kemp will serve has yet to be determined, if he serves any. The prosecutors said, “The plea agreement between the parties is for an open sentencing recommendation, meaning each side is free to make its own recommendation to the judge at the sentencing hearing.”

“Shawn is committed to moving forward in a positive direction,” Kemp’s attorney, Tim Leary, said, per the Seattle Times. “He was presented with an offer from the state that allows him to take responsibility, but I think also recognizes the self-defense nature of how this transpired.”

Shawn Kemp was a top NBA player in the 1990s

Shawn Kemp, 55, played in the NBA from 1989 to 2003. He spent the majority of his career with the Seattle SuperSonics (1989-1997) before spending time with the Cleveland Cavaliers (1997-2000), Portland Trail Blazers (2000-2002) and the Orlando Magic (2002-2003). In his career, Kemp was named an All-Star for six consecutive seasons (1993-1998). He averaged 14.6 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per contest.

During an appearance with What’s The Skinny last year, Kemp compared his era to today’s NBA. “I think the game is great today. I don’t think the players don’t get the credit,” he said, per BasketballNetwork.net. “For one, the game was more physical, and when you watch the old NBA, one thing is for sure, you will see more fights, a little more talking, bigger guys, bigger bodies. I think today’s game is like a Ferrari or a Porsche. These guys are really fast, and they are long and lengthy and durable. The way they are shooting the ball is much better than we could ever imagine these days, and just the overall spirit in today’s game is growing,”