On Thursday October 23, after the Golden State Warriors played the Denver Nuggets. “Inside The NBA” aired but did not start with covering the exciting game but instead began talking about the biggest gambling scandal in the NBA.
On the same day Federal authorities announced over 30 people had been arrested in ties to organized crime which included NBA employees.
Among the many arrested, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was accused of sharing inside information about his own personal performances in games to help sports bettors.
Another arrested was the Portland Trailblazers coach Chauncey Billups. He was accused of operating a rigged poker ring with ties to the mafia and other organized crime.
Both Rozier and Billups have been placed on administrative leave with further legal and league action coming.
Between March of 2023 and March 2024 Rozier has been accused of assisting sports bettors in at least 7 games.
While Rozier was playing for the Charlotte Hornets a game versus the New Orleans Pelicans, a pro sports bettor placed 30 bets on Roziers unders in the span of 46 minutes.
All bets totaled up to 13,759 after all 30 bets won, which was immediately flagged for suspicious activity.
The NBA conducted its own investigation and found that there were no violations of NBA rules regarding gambling or player misconduct.
Rozier has stated via his attorney that he is not a gambler and is “looking forward to winning this fight.”
He is now declining any questions relating to his arrest.
Along with Rozier, Billups has also been accused of giving insider information about players and games.
He provided sports bettors insights to his players availability, and injury or resting status allowing the bettors and him to profit.
Alongside Billups involvement in illegal gambling, he also partook in underground high stakes poker games that were rigged.
The ring used advanced technology like tampered card shufflers, x-ray tables, hidden cameras, and marked cards.
These rigged poker games were allegedly hosted by mafia tied families at luxury venues in many different cities.
The victims of these games were lured in by the presence of celebrity athletes such as Billups.
Billups coaching contract may be terminated if he is found to be guilty of breaking the league’s rules and the law.
This makes integrity and trust throughout the league at stake and also raises questions about competitive fairness in the NBA.
