Nuggets say mascot was fired for ‘business reasons,’ not disability

The Denver Nuggets are asking a judge to dismiss a disability discrimination lawsuit that was filed by a man who played the team’s mascot, claiming that his hip condition is not a disability and, even if it is, the team was not wrong to hold open tryouts after his surgery.

“Any actions taken with respect to the plaintiff’s employment were taken for legitimate, non-discriminatory and non-retaliatory business reasons,” team lawyers wrote Sept. 25.

Drake Solomon, 32, is the son of Kenn Solomon, who became the first Rocky in 1990 and remained the mascot until his retirement in 2021. Drake, who had worked for the team’s promo squad for 10 years by then, was hired to replace his dad after a closed tryout.

Not long after taking the job, which pays a $70,000 base salary plus appearance fees tha