Chauncey Billups arrested on charges connected to illegal poker ring
Portland Trail Blazers coach and former Detroit Pistons player Chauncey Billups was arrested on charges connected to an illegal poker ring.
A lawyer for former Milwaukee Bucks guard Malik Beasley stated his client did not cooperate with a federal gambling investigation.More than 30 people have been indicted in a sweeping NBA gambling scandal, including coach Chauncey Billups and guard Terry Rozier.The arrests came four months after news broke that Beasley was under federal investigation for gambling on NBA games while he played for the Bucks during the 2023-24 season.
A lawyer for former Milwaukee Bucks guard Malik Beasley said his client did not cooperate with a sweeping federal investigation into gambling and organized crime, according to a report from The Detroit News.
More than 30 people have been indicted due to their reported role in the NBA gambling scandal. Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and former NBA player Damon Jones were arrested as part of the investigation, which involved massive illegal gambling rings, FBI director Kash Patel said during an Oct. 23 news conference.
The arrests came four months after news broke that Beasley was under federal investigation for gambling on NBA games while he played for the Bucks during the 2023-24 season. Then, in August, his attorney Steve Haney Beasley “is not the target of this investigation” during an interview with ESPN.
On Thursday, Haney said Beasley “has not and will not cooperate with any pending federal investigations.”
“I want to make this perfectly clear any avoidance Malik Beasley has in connection with today’s developments in the federal gambling arrests has no relationship whatsoever to any alleged or accused cooperation or information provided to the eastern district in New York,” Haney said in a statement to The Detroit News.
He added, “I’m concerned when I hear La Cosa Nostra. It makes everyone pause a little bit. So, I want to be clear that Malik absolutely did not, has not and will not cooperate in this pending investigation. He has no association with any of it. He provided no information to the Department of Justice.”
Haney did not immediately respond to interview requests from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York declined to comment.
The NBA issued a statement following the indictments, announcing that Rozier and Billups are being placed on immediate leave.
Billups was charged in connection with an illegal poker operation tied to the mafia, and Rozier is accused of manipulating his performance during an NBA game to benefit illegal betting.
Jones is one of three people charged in both indictments, according to U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Joseph Nocella Jr.
Beasley spent the 2024-25 season with Detroit, helping the Pistons return to the playoffs for the first time in six years and starting every game.
The NBA banned former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter for life in April 2024 for gambling on his own performance in games. Porter, who pleaded guilty in the federal case, was part of a six-person gambling ring.