The NBA’s illegal gambling saga took a turn on Thursday, as the FBI arrested multiple people involved in its investigation into sports betting.
This investigation has been hanging over the league’s head since early 2025, when it was reported that the FBI was looking into players for their roles in potential illegal betting activities. On Thursday, the FBI finally acted, arresting several current and former players who are part of the probe.
Every sport appears to have its own gambling controversy, but the FBI’s investigation seems to be focused on the NBA. The FBI announced that was undergoing two separate investigations that are still ongoing, one into sports betting and one into illegal poker games.
Here’s the latest on who is involved in the probes.
MORE: Which players have received NBA lifetime bans?
NBA gambling arrest updates
Terry Rozier
The FBI arrested Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier Thursday morning as part of a larger sports betting and gambling probe. Rozier was being investigated earlier in 2025 for illegal sports betting, and while ESPN’s Shams Charania reported he was cleared in June, that appears to not be the case.
Rozier was initially investigated for suspicious betting patterns while he was with the Charlotte Hornets in 2023, which was the same investigation that led to a lifetime ban for former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter. The NBA claims that it looked into the situation and cleared Rozier of any illegal activity.
The FBI confirmed that Rozier was involved in the sports-betting scheme by providing inside information to manipulate prop bets between 2022 and 2024. Rozier’s attorney released a statement denying Rozier’s wrongdoing, claiming the FBI just wanted to arrest a big-name NBA player.
Terry Rozier’s lawyer gives a statement to @pablofindsout:
“We have represented Terry Rozier for over a year. A long time ago we reached out to these prosecutors to tell them we should have an open line of communication. They characterized Terry as a subject, not a target, but…
— Pablo Torre Finds Out (@pablofindsout) October 23, 2025
The NBA announced that it placed Rozier on administrative leave on Thursday.
NBA statement on Billups and Rozier being placed on leave from their respective teams: https://t.co/Bm1rC3Jwq1 pic.twitter.com/aoXqj4IEAL
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 23, 2025
Additionally, the NBPA released a statement supporting Rozier.
“The integrity of the game is paramount to NBA players, but so is the presumption of innocence, and both are hindered when player popularity is misused to gain attention,” the statement said, via Chris Mannix. “We will ensure our members are protected and afforded their due process rights through this process.”
MORE: What to know about Terry Rozier’s arrest
Chauncey Billups
Portland Trail Blazers head coach and former NBA point guard Chauncey Billups was also arrested by the FBI on Thursday morning in organization’s illegal betting probe. According to ABC News, Billups did not bet on games in which he played or coached, as he was instead arrested for his connection to an illegal poker game tied to the Mafia.
According to the FBI, Billups was involved in poker games that sought to defraud participants by rigging the entire game, using former athletes like Billups to recruit players.
Billups coached the Trail Blazers against the Minnesota Timberwolves in both teams’ season-opening game on Wednesday night. The NBA placed him on administrative leave on Thursday.
MORE: Chauncey Billups arrest details
Damon Jones
The FBI arrested former NBA player Damon Jones as part of the illegal sports betting and gambling investigation, although his involvement is still unknown. Jones spent 11 years in the NBA and later was an assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2015 to 2018.
BREAKING | NBC News: Former NBA player Damon Jones has also been arrested by the FBI in connection with the charges being announced today — no indication he is tied to bets on games he played — according to two people familiar with the matter.
Reported w/ @jonathan4ny
— Tom Winter (@Tom_Winter) October 23, 2025
The FBI announced that Jones is involved in both the illegal sports betting scheme and the rigged poker games investigation.
Damon Jones is being tied to both the illegal sports gambling ring and the illegal poker games, the only person with NBA connections connected to both.
— Chris Mannix (@SIChrisMannix) October 23, 2025
The Athletic reports that Jones used his relationship with LeBron James to find out information about injury in 2023, which he then used to tell co-conspirators to bet on the Milwaukee Bucks for a game before the Los Angeles Lakers released an injury report. Jones also reportedly did this with a different Lakers player in 2023-24.
Malik Beasley
Beasley, who was part of the FBI’s investigation earlier in the year, has not yet been arrested. Currently a free agent, Beasley spent last year with the Detroit Pistons while he was being investigated, but his attorneys said that he was cleared of any wrongdoing in August.
The FBI didn’t name Beasley in either of its investigations, but investigative reporter Pablo Torre reports that Beasley handed his phone over to league investigators and that the investigation into him is still ongoing.
UPDATE: High-level NBA source says league investigation of Malik Beasley “didn’t find anything” but also didn’t technically close, as NBA deferred to separate, sprawling federal investigation.
Another source says Beasley voluntarily handed over his phone to league investigators.
— Pablo Torre 👀 (@PabloTorre) October 23, 2025
NBA players arrested
On Thursday, October 23, the FBI arrested current Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, current Portland Trail Blazers head coach and former NBA point guard Chauncey Billups, and former NBA guard Damon Jones for their roles in illegal sports betting and gambling scandals.
Is Chauncey Billups arrest related to Terry Rozier, Damon Jones?
Chauncey Billups was arrested in a separate investigation to Terry Rozier, but Damon Jones is involved in both investigations. Billups was arrested for his role in a rigged poker game scandal, while Rozier’s arrest had to do with illegal sports betting.
Chauncey Billups poker scandal
What did Chauncey Billups do?
The FBI arrested 31 people involved in rigging illegal poker games, including Chauncey Billups and Damon Jones. The scheme targeted victims by giving them the chance to play in poker games alongside former professional athletes, such as Billups and Jones, both of whom carry name recognition.
Chauncey Billups mafia connection
The FBI said the Mafia is who ran the rigged illegal poker games, which took place in the Hamptons, Miami, Las Vegas, and Manhattan.
What we know about illegal mafia poker ring
According to the FBI, those running these poker games recruited victims using big-name athletes as the hook. Once the victims were in the game, the defendants rigged the poker games with a rigged shuffling machine, poker chip trays with hidden cameras, contact lenses and glasses that read marked cards, and X-ray poker tables that could also read cards.
The defendants had an off-site operator, dubbed “The Quarterback,” who read the cards using these rigging devices and relayed the information to those playing at the table. Overall, the FBI says it has been working on this investigation for four years, which resulted in victims losing at least $7 million.
What is La Casa Nostra?
La Casa Nostra is the name for the Italian-American Mafia that initially hailed from Sicily. It directly translates to “this thing of ours” or “our thing,”and consists of the Bonanno, Colombo, Gambino, Genovese, and Lucchese families.
Will Chauncey Billups get fired?
It’s unclear if the Trail Blazers will fire Billups for his role in this investigation, but the NBA did place him on administrative leave. Portland signed Billups to an extension in April and was set to enter his fifth season with the team this year.
Terry Rozier-Damon Jones gambling scandal
What did Terry Rozier and Damon Jones do?
The illegal sports betting scandal involving both Terry Rozier and Damon Jones includes six total defendants and involved using insider information to exploit NBA prop bets.
The FBI claims that Rozier told defendants that he would leave a game early on March 23, 2023, allowing the defendants to bet over $200,000 on his player-prop unders. Rozier did, in fact, leave that game after nine minutes, allowing the defendants to win their bets.
As for Jones, The Athletic reports that he used insider information about a LeBron James’ injury in 2023 to inform other defendants that they should bet on the Milwaukee Bucks for a game before the injury report was released. Jones also reportedly did this with another, unnamed Lakers player in 2023-24.
This is the same investigation. that resulted in the NBA banning former Raptors forward Jontay Porter for life, as the FBI says Porter was threatened to participate in the scheme.
Did Terry Rozier, Damon Jones bet on NBA games?
Rozier and Jones didn’t get on the games themselves, instead receiving inside information to relay to other people who would place bets on the games for them.
Terry Rozier career earnings
According to Spotrac, Rozier has made $160 million in his career so far, which includes a four-year, $96 million deal he signed with the Hornets in 2022.
Damon Jones career earnings
According to Hoops Hype, Jones earned over $21 million in his NBA career as a journeyman guard. His final contract, however, was a four-year, $16 million deal with the Bucks for his final contract in 2008.
