Follow-up on NBA Gambling Scandal: Three Major Uncertainties Await Resolution, Billups May Face Hall of Fame Expulsion

As of October 27 Beijing time, the NBA gambling scandal has been a major point of interest since the season began, with no signs of calming down in the near future.

Earlier, the FBI declared that in two interconnected yet independent criminal probes, more than 30 people have been charged. Included in these are Heat’s Rozier, Trail Blazers’ coach Billups, and ex-Cavaliers player and assistant Damon Jones.

What will be the next developments in the gambling scandal? Renowned media outlet CBS highlighted three key mysteries awaiting answers—

1. What consequences will Billups and Rozier face?

Both face serious criminal charges. Billups is scheduled to appear in the Eastern District Federal Court in Brooklyn on November 24 (Beijing time), while Rozier has agreed to appear in the same federal court on December 9.

The NBA has announced that Billups and Rozier will be temporarily suspended from their duties, with the Trail Blazers appointing Splitter as interim head coach. Notably, although Billups is mentioned in only one of the two indictments, he appears linked to both cases. Federal authorities allege that a person referred to as “Co-Conspirator 8”—a resident of Oregon, former NBA player from 1997 to 2014, and coach since at least 2021—informed Ernest (a defendant in both cases) before the information became public that the Trail Blazers would rest key players in a March 24 game. This tip reportedly led to bets totaling over $100,000 against the Trail Blazers.

According to NBA regulations, if a coach “directly or indirectly” discloses confidential or non-public team or league information to any individual or entity, knowing or reasonably expected that such information would be used for monetary or valuable item wagers on any NBA or NBA G League games or events, the commissioner has the authority to impose a lifetime ban.

In April 2024, following a league investigation, the NBA suspended Jae’Sean Tate. The investigation concluded that Tate placed bets on NBA games, shared confidential information with gamblers, and missed multiple games to affect “below expectations” betting outcomes. The federal government accuses Rozier of similar conduct—intentionally missing games for gambling purposes.

The allegations state that Rozier informed his childhood friend Laster that he would fake an injury and leave the court during the March 24, 2023, Hornets vs. Pelicans game. Laster reportedly passed this information to Fairley, who then informed Hennen (another charge indicates that when Tate planned to miss two games in 2024, Hennen also notified Fairley). Hennen is said to have repeatedly bet on Rozier’s “below expected performance” and directed several accomplices to place similar bets. Among the unnamed co-conspirators betting on Rozier’s underperformance is a relative who had previously placed dozens of bets on Rozier’s “above expected performance,” marking a first-time change in betting direction.

Both Billups and Rozier maintain their innocence. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stated in an interview that the league had previously investigated suspicious betting activity related to Rozier’s game but “found no issues.” However, he noted that the government “holds subpoena power, can imprison people, and can use methods beyond the league office’s reach.” If Billups is found to have leaked information for gambling purposes and Rozier deliberately limited his participation for betting reasons, their contracts may be voided, potentially ending their careers.

Billups was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2024. The Hall has policies allowing it to review members whose conduct harms the integrity or reputation of basketball and may impose disciplinary actions. Records show no prior expulsions; if Billups is found guilty with severe circumstances, he could become the first player to be removed from the Hall of Fame.

2. Will other NBA players be implicated?

The federal investigation that triggered these indictments is ongoing, and it is possible that more current or former players and coaches may become involved.

In sports gambling cases, the federal government alleges that an unnamed individual residing in Florida, who “has been an NBA player multiple times,” conspired with Fairley to exploit his relationship with a Magic starter to learn, before the public, that the team planned to rest key players on April 6, 2023. This information was allegedly used to place bets on the Magic, with at least one successful wager. The grand jury knows the identity of “Co-Conspirator 1” but has not disclosed it publicly; the identity of the player with a private relationship to this conspirator remains confidential.

Malik Beasley, formerly with the Detroit Pistons and currently a free agent, has not signed with any team. Reports at the end of June indicated he is under federal investigation for suspicious betting on individual player statistics. Silver later stated the NBA has launched an independent inquiry into the matter. Although Beasley was not named in the Thursday-released sports gambling indictments, this does not rule out suspicion entirely.

Another indictment mentions that Billups and Jones (also charged in the gambling case) have been involved in rigging poker games since 2019. The accusation states that organizers used these former NBA players as “drawcards” to attract “novice players” (unaware participants) to games manipulated via altered shuffling machines and marked poker tables. It specifically notes Billups participated in such a game in Las Vegas in April 2019. Reporter Torrey revealed that Clippers coach Tyronn Lue also attended the event but did not sit at Billups’ table.

Torrey further stated that multiple professional athletes have participated in poker games organized by the accused group. The gang reportedly arranged both rigged and “fair but still illegal” poker games. In 2019, Kevin Garnett attended one such game in Los Angeles but left early—he said he originally thought it was a post-game party, not a poker event.

3. How will the scandal alter the relationship between the NBA and sports betting?

Considering that 13 of the NBA’s 30 teams have local broadcast rights owned by FANDUEL (an online betting platform), this issue is delicate. Currently, legal sports betting businesses are deeply intertwined with the NBA, its teams, and broadcasting partners’ commercial interests.

However, this does not mean the situation will remain unchanged. Before the scandal broke, Silver told ESPN the league supports reforms on “individual player data betting.”

Silver said, “This is not entirely under our control, but we have asked some partners to reduce certain individual player data betting options. Especially for two-way contract players—these players’ engagement differs from regular players, and some stats that seem minor or unrelated to final scores (like a player’s rebound count) are easily manipulated. So, we are working with sportsbooks to explore and implement more controls to prevent such manipulation.”

Silver also mentioned in the interview that while legal sports betting is “unlikely to disappear,” “more regulation is needed.” He added, “I hope for federal-level regulation rather than state-by-state rules. Also, promotions and advertising related to betting need to be monitored.”

Silver consistently believes that regulated, legal sports betting is preferable to illegal gambling, partly because “we can now monitor it in ways unimaginable years ago.”

Three days later, Silver expressed that upon learning of the indictments, he felt “deeply troubled and heavy-hearted.”