Two days into the 2025 the NBA season, shocking news arose that more than 30 people had been arrested after the FBI investigated people involved in illegal gambling operations and rigged poker games. Among them were Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, former player and assistant coach Damon Jones and Portland Trail Blazers head coach and Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups.
On Oct. 23, the FBI announced that numerous individuals across the country had been taken into custody following a mass investigation involving numerous charges dealing with rigged poker games and illegal sports betting. Rozier and Billups, both active members of the NBA, were placed on unpaid leave the following day of their arrest. Rozier is charged with placing bets on himself during several games starting in March 2023, when he was a member of the Charlotte Hornets. In one instance, he left the game in just under 10 minutes of play with an apparent foot injury and did not return. Rozier informed his friends of his plan to leave the game and placed numerous bets on his unders, allegedly cashing in over $200 thousand according to a Nov. 29 Yahoo article.
The suspicious number of bets placed on Rozier’s under raised red flags among prosecutors. He gave out non-public information to those close to him, allowing them to profit from these games, an unfair advantage that poses as a federal crime. As of now, seven other games he played in have been flagged for illegal gambling. He was subsequently arrested in his hotel room in Orlando while traveling with the Miami Heat and is now threatened with potential fines and jail time.
Billups, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame last year and is a former NBA Finals MVP, faces a very different set of serious allegations. Arrested in Oregon on the same day as Rozier, he is accused of running illegal poker games. According to FBI reports, four of the five major mafia organizations had ties in this operation, and Billups played a central role in rigging poker games that resulted in profits of millions of dollars. He allegedly used his fame to bring high-profile players to the table, and later used illegal methods, such as X-rays under the table, to see opponents’ cards. Throughout all the charges against the 34 criminals, the FBI claims that tens of millions of dollars have been acquired through fraud and placed into the pockets of wealthy celebrities. Billups, whose charges include wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy, could each carry sentences up to 20 years in prison.
Jones, a former player and assistant coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, faces charges similar to Rozier’s. He is suspected of using insider information during the 2016 season, tipping off people in his personal life about which games LeBron James would be sitting out. This information allowed bettors to place advantageous wages.
According to ESPN, the total number of defendants is currently 34. As more news continues to emerge, new allegations have surfaced against other sports figures. The New York Post alleges that Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue attended some of the illegal poker games with his close friend Billups. Similarly, CBS reports that former NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers tight end Antonio Gates may be involved, citing Pablo Torre, who reported he both ran and attended these poker games. While no actions have resulted from these speculations, expanding investigation has raised concerns within the league about just how widespread the misconduct may be.
The NBA is no stranger to major gambling scandals. In 2007, former referee Tim Donaghy admitted to betting on games he officiated, and former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter was given a lifetime ban for his involvement in sports betting last year. The league already investigated allegations against Rozier last offseason; now the widening problem indicates that his situation may have been an early sign of a larger problem.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver has been considered unwilling to hand out punishments unless necessary. Apart from a few instances of severe punishment, such as Porter or former owners of the Suns and Clippers, respectively, Robert Sarver and Donald Sterling, who were forced to sell the teams for their racist and sexist remarks, Silver has been a commissioner rarely known for his strict involvement in suspending players or coaches. Fans now question whether the league failed to conduct a thorough investigation into Rozier, opted to avoid issuing penalties or intentionally downplayed the situation to avoid negativity and keep it away from the media.
Since the initial release of this report, more news has emerged across sports about illegal betting operations. Recently, two MLB pitchers for the Cleveland Guardians, Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz, were charged with working with bettors who told them what pitches to throw in regular-season games starting in the 2023 season. If indicted on all charges, both men could face 65 years in jail.
In previous years, the NFL dealt with scrutiny after reports surfaced involving wide receiver Calvin Ridley and Jameson Williams during the 2022 and 2023 seasons for their involvement in sports betting. For Ridley, he was suspended for the 2022 season after the league found he placed multiple bets on NFL games while away from the team on the non-football illness list. For Williams, he was suspended four games in 2023 for placing non-NFL bets inside the Detroit Lions facility, which violates the NFL’s gambling policy.
Despite all of these gambling issues directly affecting their organizations, especially in the past few years, leagues still promote gambling sites to fans during games and seem to ignore the problems affecting their own league. Instead of minimizing access to fans and players, major sports organizations continue to make it easier for anyone to bet through commercials shown on TV and in stadiums.
As more information and rumors surface, many fans are left wondering what happens next with sports betting and players, who else is guilty, who may be innocent and what the NBA truly knew before the FBI had to step in. Other sports leagues and players are discovered to have a gambling addiction explaining why someone making millions would risk their career just for a few extra bucks. However, no changes to advertisements or rules are forthcoming, and as time goes on, many sports fans are wondering what it takes to limit illegal betting behind closed doors. For many fans, the NBA is starting to feel less like the National Basketball Association and more like the National Betting Association.
