With the NBA engulfed in a national circus of drama, Shaquille O’Neal weighed in on the NBA sports betting scandal with alleged crime family ties, saying he was “ashamed” on behalf of the NBA family members and 34 people arrested by the FBI. The sports world waited with baited breath for “Inside The NBA” on ESPN to hit the screen as Ernie, Shaq, Kenny and Chuck pontificated on the recent shocking turn of events that has rocked the league.
“All these guys knew what was at stake and I’m just ashamed that they put themselves and their family and the NBA in this position. There’s an old saying in the ‘hood: ‘All money ain’t good money’” Shaq continued.
“We all know the rules, we all know the letter of the law and it’s just unfortunate. Innocent until proven guilty, but usually when the FBI has something, they have you. They’ll wait two, three, four, five years, but when they come knocking on your door, they have something.”
Shaq added: “We all know the letter of the law when it comes to gambling and sports gambling and I don’t want to sit up here like I’m some perfect guy…every now and then, when I go to Vegas, I’ll play some craps and I’ll play some roulette but I never gambled at anyone’s house. Don’t know anything about poker.”
“So if you’re making $9M and you’re dealing a certain thing, like, how much more do you need? Especially if you know you get caught, you could do jail time, lose your career, put a bad image on yourself, your family or on the NBA…They dropped the ball.”
Shaquille O'Neal on the NBA betting scandal: "Innocent until proven guilty, but usually when the FBI has something, they have you… They'll wait two, three, four, five years. But when they come knocking on your door, they have something…" #NBA#InsidetheNBApic.twitter.com/tFHnxEoemu
Three Prominent Members Of NBA Arrested In Separate Illegal Gambling Schemes
Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, Portland Trailblazers head coach Chauncey Billups and the retired guard and former Lakers assistant Damon Jones were among those snagged by the FBI along with 13 alleged members of the Mafia, in a two-layer scam that FBI Director Kash Patel described as “the inside training saga for the NBA.”
The FBI said the twin schemes – one of them focused on insider sports betting and another on poker rigged with high-tech equipment like X-ray machines, spanned several years and, according to Patel, swindled people out of “tens of millions of dollars” through wire fraud, money laundering, extortion and gambling.
Grand Jury Indictment Cites Rozier, Jones and Other Co-Defendants In Inside Trading Information Scheme
Of the two schemes, Rozier’s – in accordance with these other co-defendants involved – is considered the most serious. He has a history of suspicion surrounding this kind of activity as he was investigated a few years back by the NBA. With Rozier facing no punishment in the initial investigation, the NBA is also now under a microscope concerning their inaction on the matter.
The actual federal indictment and grand jury charges levied by the United States District Court of Eastern District of New York against six of the defendants recently arrested in a massive 34-person sting operation targeting an illegal gambling ring with Mafia ties has surfaced.
These are allegedly the main figures in the inside trading of information schemes in which information about specific players was leaked prior to it being released to the public, with the intent to gain an advantage when placing prop bets.
I. The defendant ERIC EARNEST, also known as “Spook,” was a resident of Missouri.
2. The defendant MARVES FAIRLEY, also known as “Vez,” ”Vezino” and “Vezino Locks,” was a resident of Mississippi.
FAIRLEY represented himself on Instagram as a successful sports bettor and sold sports betting picks through his Instagram profiles.
3. The defendant SHANE HENNEN, also known as “Sugar,” was a resident of Pennsylvania and Nevada. HENNEN represented himself on Instagram as a successful sports bettor and sold sports betting picks through his Instagram profiles.
4. The defendant DAMON JONES, also known as “D Jones” and “Dee Jones,” was a resident of Texas. JONES was a National Basketball Association (“NBA”) player
from approximately 1999 through 2009 and an NBA coach from approximately 2016 through 2018.
5. The defendant DENIRO LASTER, also known as “Peso,” “Payso” and ”Niro,” was a resident of Ohio.
6.. The defendant TERRY ROZIER, also known as “Scary Terry” and ‘”Chum,” was a resident of Ohio, North Carolina and Florida. ROZIER was a professional basketball player who has played in the NBA since 2015. During the 2022-2023 NBA season, ROZIER played for the Charlotte Hornets. ROZIER was close friends with the defendant.
7. DENIRO LASTER, and they had known each other since childhood.
Shaquille O’Neal admits to gambling, but within the rules the NBA and law detail as legal. He said he feels “ashamed” that Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier and other accused would put their families and the league in this position. (Getty Images/AI)
The Fraudulent Wagering Scheme
According to the grand jury indictment in or about and between December 2022 and March 2024, the defendants ERIC EARNEST, MARVES FAIRLEY, SHANE HENNEN, DAMON JONES, DENIRO LASTER and TERRY ROZIER, together with others, participated in a scheme to defraud the Betting Companies by providing, obtaining and using non-public information relating to NBA games to place and cause others to place fraudulent sports wagers for profit, and to launder the proceeds thereof.
31. The fraudulent wagering scheme typically involved various iterations of the same pattern within a network of co-conspirators. The defendants and certain co-conspirators had access to private information known by NBA players or NBA coaches that was likely to affect the outcome of upcoming NBA games or individual players’ performances.
They provided other co-conspirators this non-public information-in exchange for either a flat fee or a share in expected wagering profits-for the purpose of betting. The co-conspirators disseminated the non-public betting information through a network of individuals who placed bets on the co-conspirators’ behalf, placed wagers on their own behalf, or directed others to place wagers, all with the intention of profiting off the scheme at the expense of the Betting Companies.
As a result, many of the wagers were placed in connection with betting lines that did not reflect or account for the private information known by the defendants and their co-conspirators, rendering the wagers more profitable.
32. The defendants and their co-conspirators placed and caused others to place these fraudulent wagers through the Betting Companies’ mobile applications and retail sportsbooks. In doing so, the defendants and their co-conspirators made and caused others to make materially false and misleading statements and representations to the Betting Companies, and to omit to state one or more material facts which made what was represented under the circumstances misleading, including that the wagers were placed in accordance with the Betting Companies’ terms and conditions and house rules prohibiting, among other things, wagering based on non-public information and straw betting.
33. In many instances, the defendants and their co-conspirators’ fraudulent bets were successful and were paid out by the Betting Companies. The Betting Companies would not have paid bettors for successful wagers had they known that the bettors possessed non-public information pertaining to the event or were placing the wagers at the direction of and for the benefit of others.
Is It Illegal For NBA Players To Bet On Basketball?
It’s illegal for NBA players to bet on basketball games. The league clearly documents that it is a major violation of rules. The NBA prohibits its players, coaches, and staff from betting on any NBA, WNBA, G League, or BAL games and competitions. The league’s policy also forbids “tipping” confidential information to assist others in betting and requires players to avoid any involvement in prohibited betting. Violations can lead to severe penalties, including fines, suspensions, and contract termination.
Terry Rozier Lawyer Says NBA Relying On Incredible Sources
Rozier and Billups have been placed on ‘immediate leave’ by the NBA and appeared in federal courts in Florida and Oregon. Rozier’s lawyer, James Trusty said prosecutors are blowing this situation out of proportion and “appear to be taking the world of spectacularly incredible sources rather than relying on actual credible evidence of wrongdoing. Terry was cleared by the NBA and these prosecutors revived that non-case,”
Stephen A. Smith accused Donald Trump of being on a revenge tour against the NBA and any group that ever said anything negative about him or his policies. This is quickly becoming a circus and marring the beginning of the NBA season. It seems Terry Rozier will ultimately be the ultimate fall guy in this scandal. His days in the league are probably done.
