NBA Scandal: Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier, and Other Legends Among Dozens Accused in Illegal Gambling Case
Kyiv • UNN
Over 30 individuals, including Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier, have been accused of involvement in illegal betting schemes and poker game manipulation. These operations, which generated millions of dollars, are linked to New York mafia groups.
A high-profile scandal has erupted in the United States involving the National Basketball Association. Federal prosecutors have charged more than 30 individuals, including NBA legend and Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat player Terry Rozier. They are suspected of involvement in large-scale illegal betting schemes and manipulation of poker games, which involve New York mafia groups. This is reported by Reuters, writes UNN.
Details
Two separate but related cases cover multi-year schemes that generated tens of millions of dollars in profit. According to the FBI, one of them was based on insider betting on NBA games, the other on fraud in poker games in major US cities. FBI Director Kash Patel called it "the NBA insider trading saga."
The investigation claims that Terry Rozier passed non-public information about matches to partners, which was used for profitable bets through straw players. One such case occurred in March 2023: Rozier announced in advance that he would leave the game due to injury, which allowed accomplices to place bets of more than $200,000 on his unsuccessful statistics.
Chauncey Billups, in turn, is accused of facilitating the manipulation of poker games, which were allegedly organized "for celebrities." According to prosecutors, fraudulent technologies were used – from fake card shufflers to "X-ray" tables that allowed control over the game.
Louvre director resigned after robbery, but was refused22.10.25, 03:57 • 7031 view
The investigation links these operations to the Bonanno, Gambino, Lucchese, and Genovese organized crime families, which controlled underground poker clubs in New York and received a share of the profits. The criminals laundered some of the money through cryptocurrency.
According to US Attorney Joseph Nocella, the accused also include former Cleveland Cavaliers player and coach Damon Jones.
In its official statement, the NBA announced that Billups and Rozier have been placed on leave pending the completion of the investigation.
We take these allegations with the utmost seriousness, and the integrity of our game remains our top priority
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said on ESPN that he supports increased federal oversight of sports betting. According to him, the league has already asked its betting partners to limit "prop bets" – individual predictions that are easiest to manipulate.