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The NBA told its 30 teams on Monday that it had begun a review of how the league could protect the integrity of the game and its players after two figures were suspended for their alleged role in a betting scheme, which was investigated by the FBI.
Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups were among those arrested in the FBI operation. Former NBA player and coach Damon Jones was also arrested.
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Class of 2024 Basketball Hall of Fame member Chauncey Billups speaks at a Hall of Fame press conference at Mohegan Sun on October 12, 2024, in Uncasville, Connecticut. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill, File)
“Given the expansion of legal betting in most U.S. states, the recurrence of integrity issues across sports, and the emergence of new betting formats and markets, this is an opportune time to carefully reevaluate how sports betting should be regulated and how sports leagues can better protect themselves, their players, and their fans,” the memo from the league’s legal department said. NBA to the team, according to The Associated Press.
Rozier was accused of conspiring with associates to help them win bets based on statistical performance in a game he was playing for the Charlotte Hornets in March 2023.
Sportsbooks spotted an unusual pattern of betting on the Charlotte game in question, including prop bets involving Rozier. The bets were marked and immediately communicated to the league. The league initially cleared Rozier of any wrongdoing.
“While the unusual bets on Terry Rozier’s unders in the March 2023 game were detected in real time because the bets were placed legally, we believe more can be done from a legal/regulatory perspective to protect the integrity of the NBA and our affiliated leagues,” the league said.
Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) watches during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards, Sunday, March 31, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass, File)
ARRESTS OF NBA’S TERRY ROZIER, CHAUNCEY BILLUPS LATEST CHAPTER OF GAMBLING SCANDALS IN THE WORLD OF SPORTS
“In particular, bets on the performance of individual players raise greater integrity concerns and require additional scrutiny.”
The league said it would review the injury reports as part of its investigation. Jones was accused of notifying his associates about the injury status of LeBron James and Anthony Davis before a Los Angeles Lakers game. There was no indication that James or Davis had any knowledge of what Jones was accused of.
“With sports betting now occupying such a large part of today’s sports landscape, every effort must be made to ensure that NBA players, coaches and other personnel are fully aware of the serious risks that gambling can impose on their careers and livelihoods; that our injury disclosure rules are appropriate; and that players are protected from harassment by bettors,” added the league.
A congressional committee asked NBA Commissioner Adam Silver for a briefing later this week to discuss issues including “the loopholes, if any, in existing regulations that allow illegal betting schemes to occur.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver speaks before the Paris 2025 Games NBA basketball game between the San Antonio Spurs and the Indiana Pacers at Accor Arena on Jan. 23, 2025. (Stephanie Lecocq/Reuters via Imagn Images)
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Silver has maintained that he would prefer federal regulation of sports betting rather than the current state-by-state approach.
