What you need to know
Former NBA player Damon Jones has been criminally charged in a new indictment that alleges he leaked information about LeBron James’ injury to sports bettors before a February 2023 game while he was with the Los Angeles Lakers.
CNBC reported that the indictment also suggests Jones, 41, may have leaked information about Anthony Davis before a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder in January 2024. Jones reportedly told his co-defendant in the case that it was “possible” that the Lakers’ star player, identified only as Player 4, would play in the game. According to the paper, Davis was the only player listed as “possible” for the game.
This information was given to sports bettors, one of whom bet $100,000 against the Lakers, which the Lakers ultimately won despite Davis’ injury.
The indictment, filed Thursday, Oct. 23, in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, New York, does not accuse James or Davis of any criminal wrongdoing. The indictment does not name the two men.
Defendants Eric Earnest, Marveth Fairey, Shane Hennen, Damon Jones, De Niro Laster and Terry Rozier are charged with defrauding gambling companies by “providing, obtaining, and using nonpublic information about NBA games to induce others to make fraudulent sports bets for profit and to launder the proceeds,” according to released court documents.
Jones served as the Lakers’ unofficial coach in 2023, according to the documents. Jones and James, 40, also played together for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The indictment also mentions unidentified Athlete 3, whom Jones says was “a teammate and coach of a prominent athlete.”
Thirty-one people, including Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, were arrested and will be charged with two counts: one count of illegal gambling and one count of illegal gambling.
“Today, we are here in New York to announce historic arrests across a wide range of criminal organizations involving both the NBA and La Cosa Nostra,” FBI Director Kash Patel announced at a Thursday morning press conference.
Patel, 45, continued: “As you know, former and current NBA players and coaches like Chauncey Billups, Damon Jones, and Terry Rozier were taken into custody today. What you don’t know is that this is a years-long illegal gambling and sports match-fixing operation. The FBI led a coordinated crackdown across 11 states and arrested more than 30 people responsible for this case today. This case is ongoing.”
Billups, a Hall of Famer who played 17 seasons in the NBA, is in his fifth season as the Trail Blazers’ coach.
According to CNN, authorities said he participated in illegal poker games in Manhattan, Miami, Las Vegas and the Hamptons. The game involved members of at least three New York Mafia families, and Billups and Jones are said to have received fees for their participation.
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The charges come a day after the NCAA Division II and Division III Governing Councils announced Wednesday, Oct. 22, that they had passed a resolution allowing student-athletes and athletics department staff to bet on professional sports.
The change was implemented in NCAA Division I on Oct. 8, but USA Today reports that the change is scheduled to go into effect Nov. 1. Betting on college sports remains prohibited.
