Not Really.What did he say? -
He hadn't spoken to him yet?
Quite possibly the board are doing all that work.
“I’ll be honest; my brother-in-law down south has texted me about a hundred names lately, and it was Francis Jeffers last night "
Nothing wrong with that.
"I don’t know where the story's come from."
He probably doesn't know who told the press the story. so again. Nothing wrong with that
He has obviously been playing his cards close to his chest, using specific carefully chosen words to reply with, but I don't see any out and out lies in there.