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The sports world reeled from a massive NBA gambling scandal after federal authorities arrested 34 people in 11 states. This FBI-led operation exposed illegal gambling schemes worth tens of millions of dollars. The investigation implicated NBA stars Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier, along with members of crime families.
Federal prosecutors revealed a widespread conspiracy that combined insider sports betting and rigged poker games. The schemes caused victims to lose at least $7,150,000 since April 2019. Members of the Lucchese, Bonanno, Gambino, and Genovese Mafia families backed these sophisticated operations. NBA insiders leaked confidential information that could affect game outcomes and player performances.
Rozier’s case stands out dramatically. He allegedly tipped off associates about leaving a game early due to a fake injury. This allowed them to bet over $200,000 against him reaching his expected stats. The defendants now face severe penalties – each count carries a 20-year maximum prison sentence.
FBI arrests 34 in sweeping NBA gambling scandal
Image Source: The New York Times
The FBI launched multiple raids Thursday morning in 11 states. Their operation led to 34 arrests connected to a long-running gambling operation. Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was among those arrested. FBI agents found him at an Orlando, Florida hotel during their massive operation.
Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier among those charged
Federal agents arrested Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups in Oregon. They also apprehended Rozier and former Cleveland Cavaliers player and assistant coach Damon Jones. The NBA put both Billups and Rozier on “immediate leave” after their indictments. Billups, a 2024 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, faces serious charges about rigged poker games. Rozier, known as “Scary Terry” and “Chum” in FBI documents, allegedly manipulated his game performance to help illegal betting operations. Both men face indictments for wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. Each charge carries up to 20 years in prison.
Two separate indictments: sports betting and poker rigging
FBI investigators uncovered two connected schemes. The first indictment charges 31 people in a nationwide poker rigging operation. Members of four prominent New York crime families—the Bonanno, Gambino, Lucchese, and Genovese—ran underground poker games that used sophisticated cheating methods. Rich targets were drawn into “rigged games” where prominent former athletes received payouts from “cheating teams”.
The second indictment targets six people, including Rozier and Jones, in an insider sports-betting plot. These individuals allegedly used private NBA player and team information to place fraudulent bets. A notable example occurred in March 2023. Rozier reportedly told his childhood friend Deniro Laster about plans to leave a game early. This allowed Laster and others to bet hundreds of thousands on his poor performance for the Charlotte Hornets.
Authorities call it ‘insider trading for the NBA’
FBI Director Kash Patel spoke directly about the scandal’s severity. “This is the insider trading saga for the NBA, that’s what this is”. U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella from the Eastern District of New York called it “one of the most brazen sports corruption schemes since online sports betting became accessible to more people in the United States”.
These schemes generated tens of millions in illegal profits through wire fraud, money laundering, extortion, and gambling. The defendants used innovative technology to fix poker games. Their tools included card shufflers that read decks, poker chip trays with hidden cameras, special contact lenses, and X-ray tables to see face-down cards. The sports betting operation worked like an insider trading scheme. NBA personnel leaked confidential information about injuries and game strategies to gamblers who placed large bets using this inside knowledge.
The FBI and New York Police Department’s Joint Organized Crime Task Force coordinated this year-long investigation. Officials say the investigation continues and the NBA maintains full cooperation.
Rozier accused of leaking injury info for betting scheme
Terry Rozier, Miami Heat guard, stands at the center of one of the boldest NBA gambling scandals. He allegedly coordinated a scheme to manipulate betting markets during a game on March 23, 2023, while playing for the Charlotte Hornets.
How Rozier allegedly tipped off friends before March 2023 game
Federal prosecutors say Rozier told his childhood friend, Deniro Laster, about his plan to leave a game against the New Orleans Pelicans early in the first quarter because of a “supposed injury”. This significant information stayed hidden from Charlotte Hornets officials and betting companies. The indictment shows Laster sold this insider information to two bettors for about $100,000. Rozier played just nine minutes and 36 seconds before leaving with what was reported as a foot issue. He didn’t return to play for the rest of that season.
Bets placed on Rozier’s ‘unders’ using insider knowledge
Several co-conspirators placed large bets on Rozier performing below his statistical averages after learning about his planned early exit. Court documents show bettors put down more than $200,000 in wagers on Rozier’s “under” statistics. A professional gambler in Biloxi, Mississippi placed 30 bets totaling $13,759 within 46 minutes, all betting against Rozier’s performance. The biggest single bet was $2,700, predicting Rozier would grab fewer than 5.5 rebounds.
Rozier scored only 5 points, got 4 rebounds, and made 2 assists—falling short of all betting lines. These bets reportedly created “tens of thousands of dollars in profits”. Laster flew to Philadelphia after the game to collect the money, with Rozier paying for his travel. They later met at Rozier’s Charlotte home and “counted the money” together.
The betting activity quickly raised suspicions. U.S. Integrity, a betting market monitoring firm, sent out a nationwide alert about “Suspicious Wagering Terry Rozier NBA Player Props” at 2:24 p.m. that day. Social media lit up with angry bettors on March 23, 2023, as many called out something “shady” about prop bets on his statistics after he left in the first quarter.
Rozier’s legal team denies wrongdoing
Jim Trusty, Rozier’s attorney, stands firm in defending his client. After Rozier’s arrest, Trusty said, “Terry is not a gambler, but he is not afraid of a fight, and he looks forward to winning this fight”. He insists Rozier had a real injury, noting, “He had a bunch of people that he appropriately confided in, and he had an injury, and he didn’t play another game”.
Trusty criticized how authorities handled the arrest. “It is unfortunate that instead of allowing him to self-surrender they opted for a photo op. They wanted the misplaced glory of embarrassing a professional athlete with a perp walk,” he stated. He believes prosecutors “appear to be taking the word of spectacularly in-credible sources rather than relying on actual evidence of wrongdoing”.
Rozier met with NBA and FBI officials several times in 2023, and “the original investigation determined that he had done nothing wrong,” according to Trusty. Despite these claims, Rozier now faces serious wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges as part of the larger NBA gambling scandal.
Billups charged in Mafia-backed poker rigging operation
Image Source: Los Angeles Times
Chauncey Billups, the Portland Trail Blazers head coach and Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, took part in a poker scam that targeted wealthy people. This operation differed from the sports betting conspiracy because four major New York crime families controlled these rigged poker games.
Billups served as a ‘face card’ to draw in victims
The prosecutors say Billups became what the scammers called a “face card” – a celebrity who helped lure rich, unsuspecting “fish” into high-stakes poker games. The victims wanted a chance to play cards with the former NBA champion, but they didn’t know everyone else at the table was in on the scam. The federal indictment shows Billups helped host and played in fixed games in Las Vegas during April 2019, where the scammers took at least $50,000 from victims. He got a $50,000 wire transfer after another rigged game in October 2020. The scheme has cost victims at least $7,150,000 since 2019.
Advanced technology powered the cheating system
The scammers used sophisticated technology to cheat. They had self-shuffling machines that could read cards and predict which player held the best hand. An off-site “operator” would get this information and call it to a “quarterback” at the table. The quarterback then signaled other scammers, giving them an unfair edge.
The setup became even more complex with poker chip trays that had hidden cameras to read cards. The cheaters also used special contact lenses or glasses to see marked cards, and X-ray tables that showed face-down cards[171]. This setup made it impossible for victims to win.
Crime families used force to collect debts
The Bonanno, Gambino, Lucchese, and Genovese crime families ran these underground poker games[173]. These groups took a cut from each rigged game and offered “protection” services. When victims refused to pay because they suspected cheating, these crime families turned to threats, intimidation, and violence.
Court papers describe specific cases of extortion. Between November 2022 and February 2023, gang members beat up a victim to force debt payment. They also cleaned their money through cryptocurrency, cash exchanges, and fake companies to hide their tracks. Now Billups faces charges of wire fraud conspiracy, illegal gambling, and money laundering – each charge could mean 20 years in prison[181].
NBA and teams respond to scandal with immediate suspensions
The National Basketball Association acted quick to address a gambling scandal after FBI arrests implicated active players and coaching staff.
NBA places Billups and Rozier on leave
The league put Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier on “immediate leave” from their teams right after the indictments came out. The NBA’s first public statement emphasized, “We take these allegations with the utmost seriousness, and the integrity of our game remains our top priority”. League officials committed to working with authorities throughout the investigation.
Trail Blazers appoint Tiago Splitter as interim coach
The Portland Trail Blazers named assistant coach Tiago Splitter as interim head coach after Billups’ arrest. A former NBA center, Splitter won a championship with the San Antonio Spurs in 2014 and joined the Blazers’ coaching staff in June 2025. Lead assistant Nate Bjorkgren felt the team would be “better served if he remained in his current role” when considered for the position. Splitter brings experience as an assistant coach with the Brooklyn Nets and Houston Rockets, plus success as head coach of Paris Basketball.
FanDuel and DraftKings defend legal betting markets
Major sportsbooks moved to distance themselves from the illegal operations. FanDuel called the events “deeply disturbing” while highlighting their “advanced technology and live monitoring” that helps identify suspicious activity. DraftKings supported regulated sports betting as “the best way forward to monitor for and detect suspicious behavior”. The American Gaming Association pointed to this case as “a stark reminder of the pervasive and predatory illegal market”.
Federal prosecutors outline next steps in ongoing investigation
Federal prosecutors have made it clear that the current arrests mark the beginning of what could become professional basketball’s largest gambling scandal.
More indictments expected as probe expands
U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella confirmed the investigation remains active and more charges will likely follow. Court documents reveal “overwhelming” evidence against defendants, including phone records, financial transactions, and betting data. The FBI has started interviewing college basketball players because the same gambling ring might have placed bets on college games that showed unusual wagering activity. The authorities now investigate suspicious betting patterns at Temple, Eastern Michigan, and North Carolina A&T universities.
Jontay Porter case linked to current scandal
The former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter’s case directly led to the current investigation. Porter received a lifetime NBA ban and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud after he helped bettors win wagers by sitting out games. Several betting accounts connected to Porter’s scheme also placed suspicious wagers on Rozier’s props. Prosecutors found text messages that Porter sent to co-conspirators during games, which proved his involvement.
Calls for tighter regulation of prop bets and insider access
The scandal triggered immediate calls for stricter oversight. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver supports federal regulation of sports betting. The NBA Players Association backs tighter prop bet limitations and notes they have become “an increasingly alarming source of player harassment”. Ohio, New Jersey, and New York now draft legislation to restrict certain types of prop bets.
This NBA gambling scandal ranks as one of the most important corruption cases since online sports betting became accessible to more people across the United States. Federal authorities discovered an extensive network of illegal activities that spread across multiple years and states. The victims lost more than $7 million since 2019. Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups and active player Terry Rozier’s involvement definitely shows how deep the corruption reached into professional basketball circles.
Two aspects make this scandal especially troubling. The insider betting scheme worked like “insider trading for the NBA” where gamblers received confidential information about injuries and strategies directly from team personnel. The sophisticated poker rigging operation, backed by four major crime families, used celebrity appearances and high-tech cheating devices to target wealthy players.
Law enforcement officials believe these cases are just the start. More indictments will likely follow as investigators look into college basketball and suspicious betting patterns at several universities. This case’s connection to Jontay Porter’s earlier betting scandal points to a bigger problem that could affect multiple levels of basketball.
The NBA acted swiftly by putting implicated individuals on immediate leave and working with authorities. In spite of that, people still question if current safeguards can protect professional basketball’s integrity. Sports betting companies defend their monitoring systems, though this case exposed major vulnerabilities.
The scandal expresses the dark side of legalized sports gambling. A mix of organized crime, insider information, and sophisticated technology created perfect conditions that threatened both games and gambling markets’ fairness. Stricter regulations are needed, especially when you have prop bets and insider access, to stop similar scandals. These prosecutions’ outcome will shape how the sports world handles gambling integrity going forward.
