Basketball Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups and ex-NBA player Damon Jones are among the people who will appear in federal court this week for status hearings in their illegal gambling cases, multiple outlets reported Tuesday.
At least 30 people in all will be in Brooklyn court as prosecutors and defense lawyers discuss legal filings and discovery items. According to The Athletic and ESPN, the prosecution is prepared to give plea deals to 12 of the defendants.
Billups, then coach of the Portland Trail Blazers, and Jones, who played for 10 NBA teams in an 11-year career, were arrested in October. It was unclear if either of them would be among those receiving a plea offer.
Billups was placed on indefinite leave by the NBA. He last appeared in court in November when he pleaded not guilty to charges of wire fraud, conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy.
Billups, 49, was accused of conspiring with the mafia to rig illegal poker games. He allegedly helped lure players into games where high-tech equipment allegedly was used to cheat them out of millions of dollars.
After one crooked poker game in October 2020, for example, prosecutors said Billups received a $50,000 wire from the scheme’s mob-affiliated organizers.
Billups played 17 years in the NBA, winning a championship as the Finals MVP with the Detroit Pistons in 2004. The five-time All-Star guard entered the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2024.
Billups coached the Trail Blazers to a combined 117-211 (.357) record in his first four seasons from 2021-22 to 2024-25. He also coached Portland to a loss in this season’s opener before being arrested early the following morning.
Also connected to the case, current NBA player Terry Rozier pleaded not guilty in December to wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges for his alleged role in an illegal sports gambling scheme. He has since requested that his case be dismissed.
Among the incidents alleged against Rozier is that he informed co-defendant Deniro Laster he would fake an injury and make an early exit from a game in March 2023. Laster then allegedly sold that information to a gambling ring and more than $200,000 in wagers were placed in prop bets predicting Rozier would underperform statistically.
Rozier did indeed leave the contest early, playing just 10 minutes before claiming he had a foot injury.
The Heat weren’t initially paying Rozier after he was placed on administrative leave but an arbitrator ruled last month that he is due his $26.6 million salary for this season.
Rozier, who turns 32 on March 17, has averages of 13.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 665 career games (381 starts) with the Celtics (2015-19), the Charlotte Hornets (2019-24) and the Heat.
–Field Level Media
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