Read in Browser [[link removed]]

Afternoon Edition

October 23, 2025

POWERED BY

The FBI arrested Heat guard Terry Rozier, Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, and others Thursday in what prosecutors are calling one of the boldest sports corruption cases in years—a widespread investigation into illegal gambling that stretched from NBA locker rooms to organized crime.

— Alex Schiffer [[link removed]], Dennis Young [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]], and Eric Fisher [[link removed]]

Terry Rozier, Chauncey Billups Arrested in FBI Gambling Probes [[link removed]]

Eastern District of New York

The FBI arrested Heat guard Terry Rozier, Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, and former NBA player Damon Jones on Thursday morning as part of a federal probe into illegal gambling.

Rozier and Jones were accused of being part of an NBA gambling scheme that relied on them providing inside information on the league. FBI director Kash Patel called it “the insider trading saga for the NBA” at a Thursday morning law enforcement press conference in Brooklyn.

“Terry Rozier and Chauncey Billups are being placed on immediate leave from their teams, and we will continue to cooperate with the relevant authorities,” the NBA said in a statement Thursday morning. “We take these allegations with the utmost seriousness, and the integrity of our game remains our top priority.” Portland assistant Tiago Splitter will coach the team in Billups’s absence, ESPN reported [[link removed]].

Rozier and other defendants in the NBA scheme were charged with conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, New York police commissioner Jessica Tisch said Thursday morning.

Billups was charged in a separate indictment alleging his role in a rigged poker game run by organized crime. The illegal poker scheme lured players to games using celebrities like Billups, prosecutors said, and then used “advanced wireless technologies” including “rigged shuffling machines” to guarantee profits to New York’s “Italian crime families.”

Patel said Thursday morning that two separate cases involved “tens of millions of dollars” of theft and fraud. At least 31 people were in custody Thursday, a spokesperson for the Eastern District of New York said.

U.S. assistant attorney Joseph Nocella called the scheme for which Rozier and Jones were arrested “one of the most brazen sports corruption schemes since online sports betting became widely legalized in the United States.” Jones was charged in both separate indictments, prosecutors said.

The investigation also involves former Raptors forward Jontay Porter, whom the NBA banned for life in April 2024 after he “ disclosed confidential information about his own health status [[link removed]]” to a bettor. Porter is scheduled to be sentenced in December.

NBA veteran guard Malik Beasley, who played for the Pistons last year, is also considered a “subject” in the federal investigation [[link removed]]. The operators of the Rozier-Jones ring are accused of threatening Porter.

Rozier has been linked to the gambling probe [[link removed]] since January, when The Wall Street Journal [[link removed]] reported he was under investigation for alleged point-shaving.

Rozier was still eligible to play for the Heat despite the federal investigation. He is in the final year of a four-year, $96 million contract he signed with the Hornets in 2021 and was set to make $26.6 million this season. Nicknamed “Scary Terry” for his playoff performances, Rozier is entering his 11th NBA season and is a valuable rotation player. He has averaged 13.9 points per game on 42% shooting in his career overall and has made more than $160 million in salary.

Billups began his fifth season as the Blazers coach Wednesday night and agreed to a multiyear extension with Portland this spring. Rozier sat out the Heat’s season opener Wednesday. Jones played in the NBA between 1999 and 2009 and spent three seasons as a Cavaliers assistant coach from 2016 to 2018.

In March 2023, the NBA was alerted to unusual betting on Rozier’s performance in two games that season, when he was playing for the Hornets. Tisch referred to the March 2023 game Thursday morning, saying Rozier deliberately removed himself from a game to make sure bettors could profit from the under on his prop bets for that game.

“The integrity of the game is paramount to NBA players, but so is the presumption of innocence, and both are hindered when player popularity is misused to gain attention,” the NBA’s players’ union said in a statement to FOS. “We will ensure our members are protected and afforded their due process rights through this process.”

The NBA conducted its own investigation and cleared Rozier of any wrongdoing, but his attorney, Jim Trusty, told Front Office Sports in an email in July that he had yet to be cleared by the federal government [[link removed]].

“Federal investigations can take years to complete, and the government rarely lets the subject of an investigation know whether or not they have been cleared of allegations of wrongdoing,” Trusty wrote to FOS at the time.

SPONSORED BY T-MOBILE

Golf’s Future Gets Connectivity Upgrade

The 2025 Ryder Cup highlighted how cutting-edge technology is reshaping the fan experience. From powering on-course connectivity at Bethpage Black Golf Course to delivering AI-driven highlights and real-time video coverage, America’s Best Mobile Network is pushing golf into a new era.

With advanced network solutions, fans enjoyed seamless transactions, faster streaming, and unprecedented access to the tournament’s biggest moments. Behind the scenes, next-gen 5G technology also supported broadcasters and event operations—ensuring every swing, putt, and celebration reached fans worldwide without a hitch.

See how innovation is connecting fans, players, and partners in ways that redefine the modern golf experience.

Read the full story here [[link removed]].

Gambling Issues Dogged Adam Silver’s NBA Before Latest Scandal

Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Back before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the federal ban on sports betting in 2018, NBA commissioner Adam Silver was one of the most prominent voices backing its legalization.

In 2014, less than a year after he became commissioner, he penned a now-infamous New York Times op-ed, “ Legalize and Regulate Sports Betting [[link removed]].”

Seven years after the Supreme Court ruling, the NBA is mired in sports betting scandals, including Thursday’s arrests of Heat guard Terry Rozier [[link removed]] and former NBA player and coach Damon Jones. (Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups was also arrested for his alleged role in a rigged poker scheme with ties to the Mafia.)

Last year, the NBA imposed a lifetime ban on former Raptors player Jontay Porter [[link removed]] for violating its gambling rules. Ex-Pistons guard Malik Beasley was not part of Thursday’s arrests, and his lawyer reiterated that he has “no relationship whatsoever” [[link removed]] to the federal investigation against Rozier and Billups, per ESPN’s Dan Wetzel.

The NBA cooperated with the federal government [[link removed]] for the investigation, Joseph Nocella Jr., U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, told Front Office Sports at the Thursday press conference announcing the arrests.

Onstage at the Front Office Sports Tuned In media summit just last month, Silver struck a different tone in his comments about how legal sports betting is affecting his league. He voiced his frustration with the current U.S. regulatory landscape on sports betting, where rules differ state by state.

“We now face a state-by-state hodgepodge of regulations. And people may be surprised to hear this, but the leagues do not have a seat at the table,” Silver said. “I feel as if we’re operating with one hand tied behind our back because of the regulatory structure right now.”

Still, he had praise for the way that suspicious betting patterns can be tracked in a legalized environment with the help of partner sportsbooks. “All the issues now that have come to people’s attention in our league is because, in a positive way, the leagues, in partnership with legalized sports bettors, saw aberrational behavior in betting patterns, amazingly accurate geolocating of where those bets are being placed,” Silver said. “Investigators came in and said: that’s a problem.”

For more on the NBA’s gambling crisis and Adam Silver’s stance on sports betting, read Colin Salao’s full story here [[link removed]].

MORE FOS COVERAGE

Chauncey Billups Is Rare Pro Coach Involved in Gambling Scandal

The recent string of gambling scandals have centered on athletes. Story [[link removed]]

Read the Terry Rozier ‘NBA Insider Trading’ Indictment

Rozier and Damon Jones are accused of selling inside information. Story [[link removed]]

Read the Chauncey Billups ‘Rigged’ Poker Indictment

Billups is accused of involvement in a rigged poker game. Story [[link removed]]

Chauncey Billups Played Key Role in Elaborate Poker Fraud, FBI Says

The FBI says former NBA players participated in an illegal poker operation protected by Italian organized crime families. Story [[link removed]]

Raptors, Leafs Shift Games to Make Way for Blue Jays’ World Series Run [[link removed]]

Kevin Ng-Imagn Images

TORONTO — The weight of the Blue Jays’ run to the World Series [[link removed]] in Canada’s largest city, as well as the power of the Rogers Communications sports empire, are on full display.

The NBA’s Raptors and NHL’s Maple Leafs, now also part of the Rogers portfolio along with the Blue Jays, each have moved up the start times of upcoming games during the World Series to avoid making fans have to choose entirely between the teams. Among the upcoming changes (all times Eastern):

Oct. 24: The Raptors’ home game against the Bucks will start at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 24: The Maple Leafs’ road game at the Sabres will start at 7 p.m. Oct. 25: The Maple Leafs’ home game against the Sabres will start at 5 p.m. Oct. 28: The Maple Leafs’ home game against the Flames will start at 6 p.m. Oct. 29: The Raptors’ home game against the Rockets will start at 6:30 p.m.

The time changes vary from 15 minutes to two hours, but all with a clear eye on getting those games completed at or near the 8 p.m. ET start times of each of the World Series contests. Rogers Communications, which gained majority control [[link removed]] of Maple Leafs and Raptors parent company Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment in July, will show the World Series games on the Scotiabank Arena videoboard after each of the games.

“We are proud to have the city’s teams come together and give these fans an opportunity to experience a significant moment in our city’s and nation’s history,” said MLSE president and CEO Keith Pelley in a statement. “Each of these game time changes are quite complicated and represent the cooperation of many stakeholders, including the respected leagues, coaches, and players of the Leafs, Raptors, and opposing teams and broadcasters.”

The Blue Jays are making their first appearance in the World Series in 32 years, and already, surging television viewership in Canada [[link removed]] has made the team’s performance a national event.

Rogers Revenue Results

Rogers Communications, meanwhile, also released Thursday its third-quarter results, with the figures further reflecting the company’s creation of one of the most powerful sports entities in the world.

Total revenue, which also includes the company’s many other businesses, rose 4% to $3.8 billion, while net income grew nearly tenfold to $4.1 billion, fueled in large part by one-time, non-cash gains related to the acquisition of the additional MLSE equity during the quarter. Company executives particularly touted the recent influx of additional revenue from both the Blue Jays’ ongoing run and the MLSE acquisition, and predicted more such fiscal uplift in the fourth quarter.

“We are building a sports business at scale, and we are assessing multiple options to unlock additional value,” said Rogers president and CEO Tony Staffieri.

FRONT OFFICE SPORTS TODAY Why the S.F. Giants Hired Tony Vitello Straight From College

FOS illustration

The NBA woke up to shock during its opening week as Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier were among 34 people arrested as part of a pair of investigations related to illegal sports betting and rigged poker games backed by the Mafia, according to the FBI. FOS writer Ben Horney joins from the Manhattan courthouse with the latest on the investigation, plus FOS editor-in-Chief Dan Roberts discusses the likelihood of new regulations surrounding “prop bets” and how this is yet another scandal for commissioner Adam Silver to deal with.

Meanwhile, the San Francisco Giants made a big splash hiring University of Tennessee’s Tony Vitello as their new manager, becoming the first time a big league team has hired a manager from college without any major league experience. Giants reporter John Shea of The San Francisco Standard tells Baker Machado and Renee Washington why new team president Buster Posey had to think outside the box in hiring Vitello to compete against the Dodgers and Padres.

Plus, FOS newsletter writer Eric Fisher is back from the NFL’s fall owners meetings with news on the Pro Bowl moving indoors during Super Bowl week, and we discuss Lionel Messi’s new contract with Inter Miami that will keep him in MLS until 2028.

Watch the full episode here. [[link removed]]

STATUS REPORT Four Up

Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

NFL TV ratings ⬆ The league is averaging 17.6 million viewers per game through seven weeks of the regular season, which is up 8% compared to the same time period last year, and the NFL’s best mark [[link removed]] since the 2015 season.

Vanderbilt students ⬆ Commodores kicker Brock Taylor and punter Nick Haberer held an impromptu kicking clinic [[link removed]?] for a crowd of nearly 100 Vanderbilt students Wednesday, in preparation for ESPN’s College GameDay coming to campus Saturday, which will include Pat McAfee’s field goal challenge [[link removed]].

NoBull ⬆ The athletic footwear brand has reached a multiyear, U.S.-based deal with the National Hockey League, representing the third major pact the league unveiled this week after prior pacts with prediction markets Kalshi and Polymarket [[link removed]]. The NoBull-NHL agreement will be based on showcasing the training that hockey players do before hitting the ice. “We’re really trying to build a brand around how athletes really train and how they get ready to perform,” NoBull owner Mike Repole tells Front Office Sports. “A lot of other brands are worried about what people are wearing during competition. We have a very different approach, and that’s helped open us up here to hockey and these incredible athletes.”

Flyers and 76ers ⬆ The two Philadelphia teams have struck a joint sponsorship deal with Bank of America, marking the first major piece of commercial business done together since reaching an agreement in January to build a new arena together [[link removed]]—ending years of acrimony between the two teams and their respective ownership groups.

Editors’ Picks As the NFL, NBA, and NHL Go Global, The Masters Is Looking Abroad, Too [[link removed]]by David Rumsey [[link removed]]The tournament’s chairman touted new qualification measures. College Athletes Can Bet on Pro Sports Starting in November [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]An NBA player and coach were charged Thursday in a sports betting investigation. Sandy Brondello’s Hire Is Rare for WNBA Expansion Team Tempo [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]Brondello is only a few years removed from winning a title. SPORTS TRIVIA Factle Sports

Can you rank the top five NCAA schools to have the most players on an NBA roster (during the 2024-2025 season).

PLAY NOW [[link removed]]

Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Events [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Show [[link removed]] Written by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]], Dennis Young [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]], Eric Fisher [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

If this email was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here [[link removed]].

Update your preferences [link removed] / Unsubscribe [link removed]

Copyright © 2025 Front Office Sports. All rights reserved.

460 Park Avenue South, 7th Floor, New York NY, 10016