Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, Portland Trail Blazers head coach and Hall of Fame player Chauncey Billups, and former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones have been arrested by federal law enforcement on gambling-related charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
FBI Director Kash Patel announced the charges on Thursday and noted that there are two separate cases, one of which involves fraudulent sports betting and the other rigged poker games, though Jones is a defendant in both. Patel said that more than 30 people have been arrested in 11 states, and the operations are tied to the La Casa Nostra Mafia organization. Patel said that the “tens of millions of dollars” in fraud, theft and robbery occurred over a multiyear period.
The timing of the arrests—at the start of the 2025–26 NBA season—is likely intended by the Department of Justice as a message to the NBA and the broader sports community: illegal gambling will be prosecuted.
The sports betting case, U.S. v. Earnest, reportedly involves the use of “non-public information” relayed by players and others to corrupt individuals for games played by the Charlotte Hornets, Los Angeles Lakers, Toronto Raptors and other teams. Patel and federal authorities referenced misuse of “information through long-standing friendships with NBA players and coaches, including [banned former NBA player Jontay] Porter.”
Along those lines, prop bets were allegedly placed in online sportsbooks and casinos, and the defendants then laundered their illegal winnings to make the earnings appear clean.
Rozier’s alleged involvement in sports betting has been known for some time. In January, the The Wall Street Journal reported that prosecutors from the Eastern District of New York were investigating whether Rozier, while a member of the Hornets, altered his play during a game against the New Orleans Pelicans on March 23, 2023. The suspicions arose due to high betting activity on the under for prop bets related to Rozier’s points, rebounds, and assists. Rozier left that game with an injury, playing just 10 minutes and recording five points, four rebounds, and two assists—all well below his season averages.
According to ESPN, sportsbooks “flagged suspicious betting interests” on Rozier’s stats and halted betting.
However, Rozier cooperated with an NBA investigation and met with law enforcement. His attorney, Jim Trusty, told ESPN that Rozier met on multiple occasions with the league and federal officials in 2023. It is not clear what new information or evidence led federal authorities to prosecute Rozier in 2025, given that he was already under scrutiny in 2023.
As Sportico detailed earlier this year, the NBA was alerted to unusual betting activity related to Rozier and the 2023 game. U.S. Integrity, a company that monitors betting patterns, notified the NBA and sportsbooks about these irregularities. The NBA investigated Rozier and did not find a violation of NBA rules.
The fact that the NBA cleared Rozier at the time does not mean the league is prevented from punishing him later. The NBA is not law enforcement and lacks the powers of the Justice Department. As a private entity, the NBA cannot issue subpoenas to demand evidence, including texts and other records, or compel sworn testimony. While the NBA has contractual authority over players, coaches and referees, it cannot require witnesses—including bookies and players’ associates—to cooperate in an investigation.
Perhaps most important, the NBA can’t scare witnesses into cooperating. In contrast, the government can threaten potential prosecution to induce cooperation. Being charged by the feds is also tantamount to “game over,” with defense attorneys scrambling to cut a deal. Pew Research found that in 2022, only 290 of 71,954 defendants (0.4%) in federal criminal cases went to trial and were acquitted. In contrast, 89.5% of defendants pleaded guilty.
Prop bets have increasingly been seen as problematic. For example, whether a basketball player records a certain number of assists in the second quarter might not affect the game’s outcome, and it can be hard—if not impossible—to determine whether the player altered their play to influence a prop bet. On Tuesday, NBA commissioner Adam Silver appeared on the Pat McAfee Show and said the league has “asked some of our partners to pull back some of the prop bets” because it can be “too easy to manipulate” play.
A prop betting scheme led to the NBA banning former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter in 2024. Porter, who awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, feigned injury to ensure he did not hit the “over” on prop bets related to scoring and other statistics. Porter was referenced by law enforcement on Thursday as connected to the same scheme alleged involving Rozier and Jones.
Rozier, 31, has earned $135 million in NBA salaries over a career that began when the Boston Celtics drafted him in the first round of the 2015 NBA Draft. He has also earned endorsement income and has litigated intellectual property issues related to a “Scary Terry” clothing line.
In a statement to Pablo Torre Finds Out, Trusty—Rozier’s attorney—denied his client committed any wrongdoing and accused federal authorities of wanting “misplaced glory of embarrassing a professional athlete with a perp walk.” He noted authorities didn’t allow Rozier to self-surrender and instead tried to humiliate him by arresting him in a hotel.
The other case, which was referenced in the press conference as “U.S. v. Aiello,” involves Billups and Jones allegedly partaking in an illegal poker operation. Unlicensed poker games are illegal, and if they are intended to further a criminal enterprise, can lead to criminal charges—including federal charges when the activity crosses state lines.
According to law enforcement, Billups and Jones were “face cards”—celebrities who are marketed by poker groups to “fish,” meaning people who want to play poker with celebrities. Billups and Jones were allegedly “in on the scam”—which involved use of shuffling machines to rig the poker games. Cell phones to relay information were also allegedly involved.
Billups, 49, played 17 seasons in the NBA, earning $107 million in player contracts. Like Rozier, Billups began his NBA career with the Celtics, who drafted him with the third overall pick in the 1997 NBA Draft.
Jones, 49, was undrafted and played for several teams over 11 years during which he earned $21.7 million in NBA contracts. He was an assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers between 2016 and 2018.
Eben Novy-Williams contributed to this story.