A new NBA gambling scandal includes some familiar names with Cleveland ties.
More than 30 people have been arrested, including former Shaker Heights basketball star Terry Rozier, a 10-year NBA veteran now with the Miami Heat. He faces unspecified charges tied to alleged illegal sports betting and rigged poker games reportedly backed by the Mafia. Damon Jones, who played for the Cavs from 2005 to 2008 and later served as an assistant coach in Cleveland, is accused of giving inside information to co-defendants, who then used it to place NBA wagers.
Ideastream Public Media’s sports commentator Terry Pluto said the most troubling name implicated is Chauncy Billups, a basketball hall of famer and Portland’s current head coach.
“(He’s) a guy that made $107 million dollars as a player.," Pluto said. "Then, he's been coaching the Portland Trail Blazers for the last four years, making over $4 million a year, and he's involved in that."
Pluto said Billups has a noteworthy Cleveland connection. In 2017, when Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert fired general manager David Griffin, he reportedly wanted to hire Billups as the team’s next GM.
“Well, they offered him all kinds of different contracts," Pluto said. "Billups turned it down, I think primarily because he realized that the 2017-2018 season was going to be the last with LeBron James, you'd have a massive rebuilding job. Gilbert decided, ‘Well, I kinda like Koby Altman (and) he's been the assistant here for a while. We'll just promote him.’”
Pluto stressed the involvement of a coach or executive makes gambling scandals particularly concerning. While the most serious allegations against Billups regard his involvement in rigged poker games, Billups was also accused of providing inside information that could potentially be used for betting.
“The gamblers are always interested in injury reports," Pluto said. "They want to know who's going to be playing that night and who isn't. A guy who really can get information not only on his own team, but from all over the league is a general manager or a coach."
Billups is accused of tipping off bettors that the Trail Blazers would be resting top players.
“This is information you really want if you're a bettor,” Pluto said.
Pluto added that according to the FBI, Billups began participating in the poker games in 2019, which would have been his second year serving as the Cavaliers’ general manager.
“This is a major, major scandal for the NBA, and thank goodness this didn't end up in Cleveland,” Pluto said.
Terry Rozier is accused of conspiring with associates to help them win bets based on his statistical performance in a game played when he was with Charlotte on March 23, 2023. He scored just five points and played less than 10 minutes before saying he was hurt.
Pluto said prop bets, which are wagers on individual player performances rather than game outcomes, are becoming an increasing problem across professional sports. He noted they’re also at the center of the ongoing investigation involving Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz.
“They were supposed to throw a ball or walk a guy a certain part of the games," Pluto said. "It had nothing to do with the big outcome overall. Those two guys, Ortiz and Clase, are still out while Major League Baseball is investigating that, and my belief is they know what they're going to do with those guys. They just don't want to announce it until after the World Series. And there's a good chance, in my opinion only, that both of those guys could be suspended for life. They've got to hammer these people here."
Looking ahead, Pluto warned that the problem may grow before it’s contained.
“Yeah, there'll be more coming out," Pluto said. "I know there are several college basketball programs that are being looked at. You want to feel that the game is not rigged. I guess that's what it comes down to."
And Pluto offered a suggestion for how pro sports can address the issue.
“Maybe the commissioners of the NBA and the NFL and Major League Baseball and soccer, whoever else, almost could come up with a uniform thing of penalties together," Pluto said. "They got to get way out in front of this and nail these guys. (It) just cuts the heart out of the game.”
