NEWYou can now listen to Pakinomist articles!
Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier and Damon Jones were arrested Thursday morning as part of FBI investigations into alleged foul play associated with the La Cosa Nostra crime families.
Billups and Jones are alleged to have knowingly participated in rigged poker games, while Rozier and Jones allegedly leaked non-public information about NBA games so that those close to them could place bets with a competitive advantage.
Each person has or had prominent roles in the NBA, but now their legacies are seemingly tarnished.
Here’s a deep dive into how Billups, Rozier and Jones got to where they are today.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON Pakinomist
Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier and Damon Jones were arrested Thursday for their alleged roles in illegal gambling.
Chauncey Billups
Before returning to the sidelines as a coach, Billups was a standout player, most notably with the Detroit Pistons.
Billups, along with Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace and Rip Hamilton, coached by Larry Brown, won an NBA title in 2004, when Billups was named Finals MVP.
Before that, Billups was the third overall pick of the Boston Celtics in 1997 after starring in Colorado. He was in Boston for about half a season before being traded to the Toronto Raptors. He was then traded to the Denver Nuggets the following year and signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2000.
Billups signed with Detroit prior to the 2002-03 season and found his niche, becoming a defensive stalwart and being named to four of his five All-Star teams as a Piston. From 2011 to the end of his career, he stopped with the Nuggets again, the New York Knicks, the Los Angeles Clippers and then the Pistons one last time before calling it a career. From 2003 to 2011, he averaged 17.3 points and 6.2 assists per game.
Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups watches from the sidelines during the first half against the San Antonio Spurs at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, on April 6, 2025. (Soobum Im/Imagn Images)
He was hired as an assistant coach for the Clippers in 2020, then became the Portland Trail Blazers head coach the following year. He agreed to a multi-year extension with the club in April.
Billups was allegedly dubbed one of the “face cards,” who the indictment stated were “members of the fraud squads and received a portion of the criminal proceeds in exchange for their participation in the scheme.” The scheme resulted in victims losing at least $7.15 million dating back to April 2019, according to the Justice Department.
The Billups were “used to attract victims to the games because of their status as former professional athletes,” the DOJ said.
Billups was one of five defendants who “organized and participated in rigged poker games” in Las Vegas “using a rigged mixing machine” in which the victims lost at least $50,000. One of the defendants texted another co-conspirator that Billups should purposefully lose a hand to avoid suspicion of cheating.
During that game, a defendant said one of the victims had “acted like he wanted Chauncey to have his money” because he was “star struck” by Billups, according to officials.
In October 2020, Billups was reportedly netted $50,000 after a rich poker game.
Billups’ career earnings exceeded $100 million as a player, while Jones earned at least $20 million.
Detroit Pistons point guard Chauncey Billups (1) shoots a free throw during the fourth quarter against the Washington Wizards at the Palace of Auburn Hills. The Pistons won 113-102. (Tim Fuller/USA Today Sports)
Billups is not listed in the sports betting scandal that led to the arrest of Terry Rozier. However, the DOJ cited a Trail Blazers-Chicago Bulls game on March 24, 2023, the day after Rozier’s alleged wrongdoing, in which a co-conspirator, “an NBA coach at the time,” allegedly told a longtime friend who is also a defendant in the rigged poker scheme that the Blazers would be “the best game night that night, and it would be a better quote team”. players. The rest of the players had not yet been public information. The team’s top four scorers, including Damian Lillard, did not all play that night as other co-conspirators reportedly bet more than $100,000 in total against Portland.
The “co-conspirator” in question is listed as a former NBA player whose career spanned from “approximately 1997 to 2014” and “an NBA coach since at least 2021.” Only Billups meets that criteria.
Terry Rozier
Rozier was the only active NBA player arrested Thursday as he is accused of intentionally leaving a 2023 game early, citing an injury, so co-conspirators could allegedly place bets on his “under” prop bets.
Before essentially becoming a spotty player, Rozier starred at the University of Louisville for two seasons before becoming the 16th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.
Rozier was drafted by the Boston Celtics, where he spent his first four seasons mostly coming off the bench. He was traded to the Charlotte Hornets after the 2018-19 season, where he found his footing and became an everyday starter.
Terry Rozier #3 of the Charlotte Hornets brings the ball up court against the Philadelphia 76ers during their game at Spectrum Center on January 20, 2024 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
7 NBA GAMES DOJ SAYS WAS AFFECTED BY HIGH-STAKES BETTING AFTER INFORMATION LEAKED TO GAMBLERS
As his minutes increased, he ended up averaging 18.0 points per game in his first season with Charlotte. The next season, he put up 20.4 points and achieved a career-high 21.1 points in the 2022–23 season.
Because of his skill, Rozier signed a four-year, $97 million contract extension with the Hornets shortly before the start of the 2021-22 season. However, he was traded to the Miami Heat in exchange for Kyle Lowry and a first-round pick in the 2023–24 season.
It was originally reported in January that Rozier was being investigated for involvement in a game on March 23, 2023.
Rozier reportedly told a childhood friend, Deniro Laster, that he would take himself out of a game early, citing an injury, so that Laster could place bets based on the information. Neither Hornets officials nor betting companies were made aware of Rozier’s plan, according to the indictment, and Rozier was not listed on the team’s injury report.
Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) drives to the basket against Washington Wizards guard AJ Johnson (5) in the first quarter at Capital One Arena on May 31, 2025. (Reggie Hildred/Imagn Images)
Laster then allegedly sold this information to other co-conspirators, and several people bet a total of about $200,000 on Rozier’s “under” prop bets to hit both parlay and straight bets. After Rozier played just nine minutes and never returned, the bets won. Rozier and Laster counted winnings at Rozier’s home in Charlotte about a week later, the indictment states.
Damon Jones
Despite going undrafted out of Houston in 1997, Jones still managed to play 11 seasons in the NBA. The definition of a journeyman, Jones played for 10 teams in his career. But throughout his time, he was teammates with prominent stars, including LeBron James during his three-year stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2005 to 2008. He also spent a season with Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal with the Miami Heat.
He became a coach after his playing career and won a title with James and the Cavs in 2016 as an assistant. Jones joined the Los Angeles Lakers, James’ current team, as an unofficial, unpaid member of the coaching staff for the 2022–23 season. However, Jones is accused of misconduct in that season.
He is said to have told someone close to him that a “prominent” player on the Lakers would not play on February 9, 2023, before the information was public.
“Get a great deal on [the] Milwaukee [Bucks] tonight before the information is out! [Player 3] is out tonight. Bet enough so that Djones can eat more [sic] now!!!,” Jones reportedly wrote to a friend.
The DOJ says the player was eventually ruled out with a lower-body injury — James didn’t play that night because of an ankle injury that kept him out for two more games — and ESPN has reported that the player in question is, in fact, James. The game in question took place two days after James scored 38 points to become the NBA’s leading scorer.
LeBron James (23) talks with Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue (not pictured) and former teammate Damon Jones, center, during an off-day practice before the Golden State Warriors played the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, Tuesday, June 6, 2017. (Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
Jones also reportedly provided apparent inside information about another “one of the Lakers’ best players” 11 months later regarding an injury likely to affect his performance, which ultimately backfired when the player “performed well” and the Lakers won.
Billups, Rozier and Jones, the latter of whom is a defendant in both cases, were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The NBA announced that Billups and Rozier were placed on immediate leave from their teams, “and we will continue to cooperate with the appropriate authorities.”
“The integrity of our game remains our top priority,” the NBA said.
