PLANTATION, Fla. -- Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union are backing prominent civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump in an effort to help an expelled student and family friend get back into high school.
The couple released a statement Thursday supporting senior Cyrus Nance, who was a varsity basketball player in his first year at American Heritage School until he was expelled last month after a verbal altercation with the coach of the girls' varsity basketball team.
Crump says "every fact in this case points to discrimination" and that the expulsion was extreme. Nance would like to return to school.
According to a news release from Crump that was distributed to media, Nance, who is black, and some teammates began playing basketball during a break in a girls' team practice in mid-November. The coach of the girls' team, Greg Farias, cursed at them and told them to leave, and Nance responded with profanity, according to the release. Nance was expelled the next day. Farias, who is white, was not disciplined, Nance's attorneys said, according to the Miami Herald.
An attorney for the school, Eric Schwartzreich, said in a statement that the allegations of discrimination are "entirely untrue" and that Nance did "more than using profanity toward a coach."
"American Heritage will not publicly discuss any student's discipline given its respect for a student's privacy and confidentiality over such matters. However, the student handbook published to parents and students makes clear that any student who uses profanity at staff members or faculty will be expelled. The school consistently applies this guideline," Schwartzreich said in the statement.
Former American Heritage coach Brent Maffett -- who joined Crump, Nance and Nance's mother, Angela Cross, at a news conference Thursday -- disputed that.
"I've seen it on the campus [in] different sports and different situations," Maffett said, according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel. "But, again, everything was handled case by case. There was nothing ever consistent with it."
Nance is friends and teammates with Zaire Wade, the oldest son of the longtime Miami Heat star, and Dahveon Morris, Dwyane Wade's nephew whom he is raising. Nance said Morris was present during the verbal exchange between Nance and Farias, according to the Miami Herald.
Crump also says the school has refused to release Nance's transcript until his mother signs a nondisclosure agreement and pays a fee, and that the school has refused to share a video of the incident without an NDA.
Wade and Union say they will stand by Nance until he and his mother "get the transparent due process'' that they seek.
Crump has not filed a lawsuit on Nance's behalf but noted that is the next step. Schwartzreich said the school is prepared to defend itself in court.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.