Al Horford calls for player protection over gambling concerns

The shocks this morning were the arrests of Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups in connection with a federal investigation into illegal sports gambling activities and illegal poker gamesbegan to reverberate around the league.

After that Golden State Warriors‘ shot ahead of their home opener against the Denver Nuggets on Thursday, the veteran center Al Horford spoke briefly about the astonishing news that came out just a few hours earlier.

“I think it’s something that still needs to come out,” Horford said. “I’ll just have to wait and see. You’re going to get a chance and you just have to wait. But definitely, I just want to wait for the outcome there. I don’t want to jump to conclusions.”

Rozier and Billups gambling arrests have taken the league by storm. While fans made numerous jokes about this situation, writers, critics and journalists pointed out that the NBA itself and sports in general are increasingly tied to legal sports gambling.

For Horford, who is in his 19th season in the league, it also made a powerful statement about how fan relationships and interactions with players have changed over time as betting and betting ads have grown with the league.

“Absolutely, yes,” Horford responded when followed up on how fan interactions have gotten worse.

“It’s a lot different. Sometimes it looks aggressive. And I understand that we’re professional athletes, this is the world we’re in and everything. But I think the league itself has to step in and probably do more to protect the players. And be better. All of this comes with it; it’s fan engagement. But also, there’s that other part.”

Al Horford also talked about how the fan-player relationship became “aggressive” as sports gambling became more prominent:

“I understand we’re professional athletes … but I think the league needs to step in and probably do more to protect the players.” https://t.co/pKrAhsVNVn pic.tvitter.com/tAjZpooZhk

— Kenzo Fukuda (@kenzofuku) October 23, 2025

Safety is a big concern among NBA players

Earlier this year, a disgruntled bettor shared his Instagram direct messages with Timberwolves big man Naz Reed in which the bettor clearly antagonized Reed for not racking up enough stats to pay out his money. Knicks star Jaylen Brunson told The Athletic that most of the messages from fans on his social media account tend to be threats from people who have lost bets on him.

And in the conducted survey The Athletic last season, 46% of players surveyed believed in gambling partnerships they are bad for the league. One anonymous player described the practice as “predatory,” while another shared how their DMs were filled with hateful messages.

The players are really worried about what this means for them. That’s why Horford pointed out that he called on the league to introduce measures to protect them. And with the Rozier and Billups arrests, that’s an issue the league will have to address, especially as the business side of the NBA gets more involved in the gambling industry.

“It’s a very interesting time; it’s the first time as a league and a society that we’re all living and going through it,” Horford continued. “So I’m sure it will be resolved, and it will be better. But it comes with the territory and something we have to deal with.”