Godfrey Howard, 61, a longtime Memphis Grizzlies security leader, has sued the team in federal court, accusing it of race and age discrimination after he says he was passed over for promotions and later fired without explanation.

Howard, who is Black, alleges the Grizzlies replaced an all-Black security team with younger white officers and violated federal civil rights laws, the Atlanta Black Star reports.

The lawsuit, filed March 5 in U.S. District Court in Tennessee, says Howard was hired onto the team in 2001. He was later promoted to a security leadership role at the FedEx Forum and briefly served as interim director when the previous security chief resigned in 2023.

However, he says after two months the permanent job went to Jason Pagenkopf, described in the complaint as “a younger white male,” and that two other leadership openings also went to younger white men.

Howard claims he was terminated in April 2024 despite what he says was a clean record and years of seniority. The complaint seeks back pay, benefits, damages for emotional distress, punitive damages, and reinstatement.

"Plaintiff was never formally offered the position of director of security and was not made aware that the Grizzlies were looking to fill the position because he had already assumed the position as interim director," read the lawsuit obtained by the Commercial Appeal reports. "Shortly after the season ended, Mr. Pagenkopf called plaintiff to inform him of two full-time positions that were available or that would be available soon. In fact, a new job position was created known as the director of arena and team security. Plaintiff had the seniority and experience to perform the director of team security position well."

The Grizzlies said in a statement that they are committed to fair and equitable employment practices and that the claim is without merit. The team has not publicly addressed the specific allegations in the complaint.