Feds reveal mafia-linked gambling probe that led to arrests of Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups and NBA star Terry Rozier

By Dana O’Neil, CNN

(CNN) — Portland Trail Blazers head coach and basketball Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and former NBA journeyman Damon Jones are among 34 people indicted in connection with two separate federal gambling investigations announced by the Eastern District of New York on Thursday.

At a lengthy and at times spirited news conference that included FBI Director Kash Patel, US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr., and others detailed the sweeping multi-year investigations that spanned 11 states, resulted in the arrests of 34 people, involved tens of millions of dollars and included members of the notorious Bonanno, Genovese, Gambino and Luchese crime families.

Billups, who coached in the Trail Blazers’ opening game on Wednesday night, was arrested in Portland on Thursday morning and is expected to appear in federal court there later on Thursday. Rozier, arrested in Orlando, will appear there.

Both will be arraigned at a later date in Brooklyn.

Jones, who retired in 2012, is one of three people to be charged in both cases.

“My message to the defendants who have been rounded up today is this: Your winning streak has ended,’’ Nocella said. “Your luck has run out. Violating the law is a losing proposition, and you can bet on that.’’

Billups, the Portland head coach since 2021, is charged in an elaborate scheme in which marks were lured to participate in rigged poker games in part with the opportunity to play alongside the NBA five-time All-Star as well as Jones.

Billups, Nocella said, knowingly served as the so-called “face card,” to attract the “fish,” to underground games in Miami, New York, Las Vegas and the Hamptons that they had no chance of winning. Those involved in the scheme used rigged card-shuffling machines, poker chip trays and even special contact lenses or eyeglasses that could read pre-marked cards. In some instances, the alleged conspirators used X-ray tables that reveal cards when they are placed face down.

Nocella said the scheme, deemed “Zen Diagram” by the feds, “fleeced” victims out of tens of millions of dollars. One alleged victim lost $1.8 million. The money was then laundered by the crime families.

“And when people refused to pay, these defendants did what organized crime has always done,’’ New York police commissioner Jessica Tisch said. “They used threats. They used intimidation. And they used violence. It’s the same pattern that we have seen for decades, traditional mob enforcement methods combined with new technology to expand the reach of their operations.’’

Rozier, who was arrested in an Orlando hotel, was alleged to participate in a game-fixing scheme that included prop bets on his availability.

Investigators allege between December 2022 and March 2024, Rozier tipped people about his availability for games, citing seven specific games in their investigation including one, against the New Orleans Pelicans, already flagged by sportsbooks for irregular activity.

In that March 2023 game, Rozier, then with the Charlotte Hornets, left the game after just nine minutes with an injury. According to investigators, Rozier shared that inside information, and his co-conspirator bettors made $200,000 in wagers on the under.

“Those bets paid out, generating tens of thousands of dollars in profit,’’ Tisch said. “The proceeds were later delivered to his home, where the group counted their cash.’’

That investigation, deemed “Nothing But Net,” also included the previous arrest of former Toronto Raptors center Jontay Porter, who was banned from the NBA in 2024 and later admitted to manipulating his performance in two games. He is awaiting sentencing.

Nocella said other defendants involved in the case threatened Porter, who had pre-existing gambling debts, in order to get the inside information.

“This is the insider trading saga of the NBA,’’ FBI Director Patel said.

The NBA has said previously it looked into the game involving Rozier against the Pelicans and that no rules had been broken. He was with the Heat, who opened their season on Wednesday, but did not play due to a coach’s decision.

Jim Trusty, Rozier’s attorney, strongly refuted the accusations, saying that prosecutors characterized Rozier as a subject of their investigation and not a target.

“But at 6 a.m. this morning they called to tell me FBI agents were trying to arrest him in a hotel,’’ Trusty said.

“They wanted the misplaced glory of embarrassing a professional athlete with a perp walk. That tells you a lot about the motivations in this case. They appear to be taking the word of spectacularly incredible sources rather than relying on actual evidence of wrongdoing. Terry was cleared by the NBA and these prosecutors revived that non-case. Terry is not a gambler, but he is not afraid of a fight, and he looks forward to winning this fight.”

CNN has reached out to the Heat, Trail Blazers and other teams mentioned in the news conference. Attorney information for Billups was not immediately available.

In a statement, the NBA said, “We are in the process of reviewing the federal indictments announced today. Terry Rozier and Chauncey Billups are being placed on immediate leave from their teams, and we will continue to cooperate with the relevant authorities. We take these allegations with the utmost seriousness, and the integrity of our game remains our top priority.”

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

CNN’s Kara Scannell and Mark Morales contributed reporting to this story.

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