FBI Arrests NBA Players, Coaches in Sports Gambling Scheme

Join hosts Michael Barr, Damian Sassower and Vanessa Perdomo for a look at some of the latest headlines and stories in the business of sports.

Professional basketball player Terry Rozier told a friend in 2023 that he planned to take himself out of a game early with a minor injury. The friend, Deniro Laster, used the tip to place more than $200,000 in bets predicting Rozier would fall short of his usual point total.

By the next morning, federal prosecutors say, the two men were counting their winnings together in Rozier’s home. The athlete, who was a guard for the National Basketball Association’s Charlotte Hornets at the time, played just nine minutes against the New Orleans Pelicans and checked out. 

That incident, described in a federal indictment unsealed on Thursday in Brooklyn, now sits at the center of one of the most sweeping sports gambling cases ever brought by the US Justice Department — one that stretches from locker rooms to underground poker clubs controlled by New York’s biggest mafia families.

Rozier, now with the NBA’s Miami Heat, and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups were arrested Thursday morning and charged as part of two separate criminal schemes related to illegal sports betting, federal prosecutors said.

Soon after the arrests, Rozier and Billups were placed on immediate leave from their teams. 

FBI Director Kash Patel and Brooklyn federal prosecutors said at least 30 people were arrested across 11 states, including current and former NBA players and coaches.

On this episode, hear from:

• Bloomberg News senior reporter Myles Miller for more on the massive NBA gambling scandal
• Bloomberg News global business of sports reporter Ira Boudway on another NBA controversy in which the LA Clippers might have found ways to circumvent the league's salary cap rules
• Bloomberg TV anchor Dani Burger for a portion of her conversation with Carlyle CEO Harvey Schwartz and Oracle Red Bull Racing Team Principal Laurent Mekies on their new partnership

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