What we know about Terry Rozier, the FBI investigations of Chauncey Billups

Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers Chauncey Billups they were among over 30 people arrested on Thursday morning by the FBI as part of a federal investigation into illegal sports gambling activities and illegal poker games.

Arrests made throughout the country sent shock waves across the NBAas Rozier and Billups were taken into custody.

The NBA has investigated countless cases of illegal sports gambling over the years and he recently shut Jontay Porter out of the league in April 2024, a league investigation revealed that he disclosed confidential information about his own medical condition to individuals who placed winning bets on multiple bets.

“There is nothing more important than protecting the integrity of the NBA competition for our fans, our teams and everyone associated with our sport, which is why Jontay Porter’s flagrant violations of our game rules face stiffer penalties,” Commissioner Adam Silver said in the league’s 2024 press release. “While legal sports betting creates transparency that helps identify suspicious or abnormal activity, this issue also raises important questions about the sufficiency of the regulatory framework currently in place, including the types of bets offered on our games and players.”

“Working closely with all relevant stakeholders across the industry, we will continue to work diligently to protect our league and the game.”

Rozier was previously under investigation by the NBA on suspicion of illegal gambling, but no illegal activity by the league was found. At the time, an FBI investigation was ongoing.

Now, federal agents made a number of arrests Thursday, raising big questions about the futures of Rozier and Billups, as well as the NBA as a whole.

“We are in the process of reviewing the federal indictments announced today,” the NBA said statement following an FBI press conference on Thursday. “Terry Rozier and Chauncey Billups have been placed on leave from their respective teams immediately, and we will continue to cooperate with the appropriate authorities. We take these allegations with the utmost seriousness and the integrity of our game remains our top priority.”

Here’s everything we know about these separate but related FBI investigations.

Terry Rozier’s Suspicious Sports Gambling Investigation

Although Rozier was not punished by the NBA and its investigation because there was no violation of league rules, the FBI continued to look into the matter as part of a broader operation.

Rozier was taken into custody in Orlando on Thursday morning after the Miami Heat lost 125-121 to the Orlando Magic the night before. Federal authorities accuse Rozier of telling certain members of the betting circle that he would leave the game early in 2023 while playing for the Charlotte Hornets.

As a result, several individuals placed high “under” bets on Rozier’s bets at multiple sportsbooks, knowing he would leave the game early due to undisclosed inside information.

On March 23, 2023, the day Rozier left the game with the alleged “injury,” the defendants are said to have placed more than $200,000 in unders for his bets. After nine minutes of play, Rozier exited and did not return, causing these bets to be counted and paid out as winning bets.

After exiting the game, those who were tipped by Rozier won millions of dollars and were said to later meet Rozier at his home with their winnings, where the money was counted.

Frank Nocella Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, who is working closely with the FBI on this federal investigation, said at a news conference Thursday morning that Rozier and others involved in the scandal were “corrupt individuals” for providing this inside information, which led to illegal gambling activities from 2022 to 2024.

He went on to say that the scheme was “an insider sports betting conspiracy that took advantage of confidential information about NBA athletes and teams.”

The FBI labeled the first indictment against Rozier, former NBA player and coach Damon Jones, and four others as a “nothing but a bet operation.”

The FBI named four teams on Thursday morning as the NBA organizations bet on during the sports gambling scheme: Toronto Raptors, Charlotte Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Lakers.

At this time, no other players, coaches or NBA personnel have been named in the ongoing investigations other than Rozier, Jones and Billups.

“We have represented Terry Rozier for over a year,” Rozier’s attorney, Jim Trusty, published in a statement to Pablo Torre. “We reached out to these prosecutors a long time ago to tell them that we need to have an open line of communication. They characterized Terry as a subject, not a target, but this morning at 6 o’clock, they called me and said FBI agents were trying to arrest him at the hotel. It’s unfortunate that instead of letting him turn himself in, they decided to take a photo.

“They wanted the lost glory to embarrass a professional athlete with a felon. That tells you a lot about the motivation in this case. They seem to be taking the word of spectacularly improbable sources rather than relying on actual evidence of the week. Terry was approved by the NBA, and these prosecutors were revived.

“Terry’s not a gambler, but he’s not afraid of a fight and he’s looking forward to winning this fight.”

The Heat have not commented on Rozier’s arrest or the ongoing investigation. NBA commissioner Adam Silver and the league office are cooperating with federal agents.

FBI Director Cash Patel called it an “insider trading saga for the NBA” on Thursday.

Whether Rozier’s contract will be voided and removed from the Heat’s roster remains to be seen. If he is found guilty and prosecuted by the FBI in this investigation, the NBA would have the right to rule him ineligible, which would result in his contract being lifted from the Heat’s salary cap, luxury tax and tax aprons.

Rozier is in the final year of his $96.2 million contract and is set to make $26.6 million this season. He now faces charges of money laundering and wire fraud conspiracy, according to FBI indictments.

Chauncey Billups involved in a separate investigation into illegal poker

This is the first time Billups’ name has come up in connection with any federal investigation into illegal gambling activities.

After the Portland Trail Blazers lost 118-114 at home to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night, Billups was arrested early Thursday by federal agents in Portland and charged in a separate indictment alleging a wide-ranging scheme to fix underground poker games supported by mob families.

Members of La Cosa Nostra, including the Bonanno, Gambino and Genovese families, are connected to this investigation, FBI Director Cash Patel said Thursday.

There are 31 defendants, including Billups and Jones, who have been named in this investigation fixed poker games. This illegal activity is said to have taken place in the Hamptons, Miami, Las Vegas and Manhattan.

The poker scheme involving Billups, crime families and others targeted people to play high-stakes games with professional athletes, including Billups and Jones.

According to the FBI, modified mixing machine he would read the cards in the deck as they were dealt to the players and then relay that information to an off-site operator known as the “quarterback” of the scheme. This information was read, analyzed, and then quickly sent to someone active at the table where the game was played, according to Joe Pompliano.

Other cheating technologies were also used in the scheme, including poker chip trays that read cards through hidden cameras, special contact lenses and glasses used to read marked cards. The FBI alleges that the defendants robbed the victim at gunpoint to obtain a rigged mixing machine, and one person lost as much as $1.8 million in rigged poker games.

This investigation has been going on for four years, and the victims have lost at least $7 million. The FBI labeled the indictment “Operation Royal Flush,” which overlaps with “Operation Nothing But a Bet.”

Nocella Jr., Patel and the FBI would not disclose how the two investigations and operations overlapped.

Billups has been the Blazers’ head coach through 2021 and recently agreed to a multi-year contract extension with the organization through April 2025. Like Rozier, the Blazers coach also faces money laundering and wire conspiracy charges.

Damon Jones’ relationship with the Lakers, LeBron James

Unlike Rosier and Billups, who are involved in one aspect of the FBI’s major investigation, Jones’ name has come up in connection with both “Operation Royal Flush” and “Operation Nothing But Bet.” He is the only person from the NBA to be named in both scandals.

Jones, who is a longtime friend of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James dating back to their days with the Cleveland Cavaliers, sold or attempted to profit from classified information about an ankle injury LeBron was dealing with in 2023, the indictment alleges.

James did not play in the Lakers’ game against the Milwaukee Bucks on February 9, 2023, information Jones wanted to use. At it does not make sense that Jones was an employee organization when it happened, according to The Athletic.

Information that Jones had and sold or attempted to profit from, including who did not play in the game and who would leave the game early, resulted in the ability for others to place bets on certain bets and win immediately.

Jones allegedly texted an unnamed conspirator that the player was out and that they should bet on the Bucks before this Feb. 9, 2023 game, according to the Athletic.

In addition to his involvement in the sports gambling investigation, Jones is also involved in a poker scandal involving the Billups and mob families.

The NBA has yet to comment on the recent arrests of Rozier, Billups and Jones.