Chauncey Billups outside court in Brooklyn (Screenshot from CBS NY video)
Suspended Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, who was a star on the Detroit Pistons, pleaded not guilty Monday in federal court in Brooklyn to charges he played a role in rigged poker games linked to the New York mob.
U.S. District Judge Ramon Reyes set bond at $5 million, which was secured by Billups’ home in Greenwood Village, Colo., NBC News reports. His bond conditions say he cannot have contact with witnesses, victims, co-conspirators or co-defendants.
He faces charges of wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy.
"To believe that Chauncey Billups did what the federal government is accusing him of is to believe that he would risk his Hall of Fame legacy, his reputation and his freedom," his attorney Chris Heywood said after Billups first appeared in court on Oct. 23.
Billups, who has been put on leave from the Trail Blazers since the charges were announced last month, appeared in court in Brooklyn with his attorney, his wife and one of his daughters, NBC reports.
Last month, FBI Assistant Director Christopher Raia said Billups was allegedly recruited to play in the fixed poker games to make them appear legitimate.
"Victims were attracted to play alongside well-known professional athletes and coaches like Chauncey Billups, only to be unknowingly deceived through rigged shuffling machines, fixing the odds in their favor, as alleged," he said at a press conference.
The indictment alleges that Billups and former NBA player Damon Jones were "Face Cards" designed to attract wealthy gamblers, and that they were part of the "Cheating Team." They allegedly got a cut of the action for their participation.
In all, from 2019 to the present, the feds estimate the rigged games cheated players out of more than $7.1 million.
The 22-page indictment unsealed last month names Billups and 30 other defendants. It alleges that the nationwide conspiracy included regular poker games in New York tied to multiple mob families, including the Gambinos, once headed by the late John Gotti Jr. There were also games in Las Vegas and Miami.
In April 2019, the indictment alleges Billups and several others named in the indictment organized and participated in rigged games in Las Vegas and defrauded victims of at least $50,000. The indictment alleges they used a rigged shuffling machine provided by Robert Stroud, aka "Black Rob."
Willamette Week, an alternative publication in Portland known for its investigative reporting, wrote earlier this month: