On Thursday, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was arrested by the FBI for an illegal gambling investigation that he’s been linked to since January.
Rozier, 31, was one of 34 individuals arrested — which also included Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and former 11-year NBA veteran Damon Jones. Rozier was accused of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, though the NBA found no evidence in its initial findings.
The Heat guard was released from custody on Thursday afternoon, and he was placed on immediate leave.
The allegations stemmed back to the 2022-23 season, when Rozier was with the Charlotte Hornets.
Across multiple sportsbooks, a bettor allegedly placed 30 wagers totaling $13,759 on the unders for Rozier’s points, rebounds and assists on March 23, 2023. Though the indictment suggests that several co-conspirators bet north of $200K before the start of the March 23rd game.
According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the league knew about the incident and held Rozier out for the rest of the season.
“The sports books caught the irregular betting on Terry Rozier the day it happened,” he said. “When all of the sudden, there were hundreds and thousands of dollars coming in on Terry Rozier unders for a relatively meaningless game in March involving the Hornets.
“The sportsbook caught it. They told the NBA right away, and guess what? Rozier didn’t play the rest of the season and he had faked the injury. So, it wasn’t cause of the injury. The NBA pulled him. They pulled Jontay Porter too.”
How the NBA handled this Terry Rozier scandal is … fishy:
Not only did the NBA — a business partner with both FanDuel AND DraftKings — bypass what the sportsbooks’ warnings, they reportedly withheld information from the Heat at the time of the Rozier trade in Jan. 2023, when the deal was cleared for Kyle Lowry and a 2027 first-round pick.
“But following its own protocol, the NBA did not inform the Heat (or other teams) of that red flag in the months that followed nor did it inform the Heat prior to the league approving the January 2024 trade that sent Rozier to Charlotte for Kyle Lowry and a first round pick,” Barry Jackson and the Miami Herald reported Saturday.
“The Hornets also did not inform the Heat, sources said, though the Hornets are refusing to say if they were even aware of the matter at the time of the trade.
“Mike Cristaldi, the Hornets’ chief communications officer, said the team would not say if the Hornets knew of the NBA’s investigation at the time of the trade, whether it had any knowledge of sportsbooks flagging bets involving Rozier and why it did not inform the Heat if it did know.”
The NBA does not have the subpoena power that the FBI does. Though it remains incredibly suspicious that the league did not find a single thing wrong with Rozier during its own investigation, if what they knew at the time was true. Either they’re negligent beyond belief, or this was a flat-out cover-up.
As the days pass and more information is being reported, the latter appears more plausible.
The Heat did not know about this investigation at the time of the trade nor did the NBA feel any obligation to warn the Heat or any other team trading for him. It was crickets. Miami is at the wrong end of the stick here — especially since it dealt a first-round pick to acquire the 6-foot-1 guard, who was having one of the best years of his career at the time of the transaction.
Jackson also notes that the NBA is “refusing to say why it didn’t warn Heat about any of this” before the trade. Fishy, much?!
Make your own conclusions, but the integrity of the game is at risk. Sports betting has become more prominent across myriad professional leagues, essentially opening itself up to players, coaches and executives getting laced in gambling fraud. The league benefits from these ‘books — it increases viewership, leading to more money and, thus, more promotion. But it’s incredibly dangerous and creates an unavoidable slippery slope.
We will see whether or not the league pushes to acquire its first-round pick back — or a compensatory first, at minimum. But commissioner Adam Silver and the NBA must do the right thing and reward the Heat with some sort of compensation. It’s unacceptable and, frankly, embarrassing.
It appears they have no grasp of how to keep the integrity of the game intact, which is dangerous in the short- and long-term. They banned Jontay Porter, but are letting Rozier walk Scott free?! Something isn’t adding up here … not in the slightest.
They deserve to be reprimanded, as does anyone else involved in this case, if information was knowingly withheld.
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Excepts from today’s allucanheat
“Heat’s new offense may be perfect springboard back to contentionThe Heat’s go-go offense is a spectacle.
The Miami Heat’s new-look offense may be the exact springboard that the team needs to jump back into contention in the Eastern Conference. And if the first two regular-season games are any indication, this Heat team has the chance to easily surpass all expectations that were placed upon them before the start of the year.
Through two games, the Heat’s offense ranks third in points per game and eighth in offensive rating. They’re also leading the league (by a good margin) in PACE of play. As a pleasant surprise, one of the Heat’s biggest areas of concern heading into the year on the offensive end of the floor has also been a strength for the team.
The Heat ranks third in 3-point percentage and top-10 in 3-point makes per contest. Again, it’s only been two games, but it’s difficult not to be encouraged by the early results…”
“Perhaps what makes the Heat’s offense more impressive is the fact that they’re doing all this without Tyler Herro. Once he does return, this Heat offense could get that much more lethal. Miami is far from a legit championship contender at this point, but there could be something special brewing for the Heat.
And for the first time in a long time, it’s thanks to what appears to be an explosive new offense.”
Silver ‘Deeply Disturbed’ By Federal Gambling Indictments
I’m deeply disturbed by the fact that the NBA, Charlotte and Rozier all apparently failed to disclose the illegal gambling allegations or ongoing federal investigation to the Miami Heat before the January 2024 trade. This mess is primarily on Silver. It’s his problem to resolve. I don’t give a damn how “disturbed” he says he is.
Compensation? A top 10 – 15 first rd pick and no back to back games for 2 seasons 😉😁
MIAMI WAS NOT INFORMED BY NBA OR CHARLOTTE HORNETS OF ROZIER’S ALLEGED GAMBLING ACTIVITY BEFORE THE JANUARY 2024 TRADE!
“But following its own protocol, the NBA did not inform the Heat (or other teams) of that red flag in the months that followed nor did it inform the Heat prior to the league approving the January 2024 trade that sent Rozier to Charlotte for Kyle Lowry and a first round pick,” Barry Jackson and the Miami Herald reported Saturday.
“The Hornets also did not inform the Heat, sources said, though the Hornets are refusing to say if they were even aware of the matter at the time of the trade.
“Mike Cristaldi, the Hornets’ chief communications officer, said the team would not say if the Hornets knew of the NBA’s investigation at the time of the trade, whether it had any knowledge of sportsbooks flagging bets involving Rozier and why it did not inform the Heat if it did know.”
NBA AND CHARLOTTE HORNETS ARE AT FAULT FOR FAILING TO DISCLOSE RELEVANT INFORMATION TO MIAMI BEFORE THE JANUARY 2024 TRADE
It appears the NBA and the Hornets knew about the allegations against Rozier and failed to inform Miami of the facts. Had they done so, it is highly unlikely that Riley would have made the trade, especially if it meant giving up the team’s 2027 first round pick. As the injured party, Miami should now be compensated.
POTENTIAL OPTIONS FOR RESOLUTION BY NBA/CHARLOTTE
Option #1
Return Miami’s 2027 1st Rd pick.
Option #2
Charlotte’s 2025 second round pick, 7’1″ 256 lb. center Ryan Kalkbrenner, at minimum. Kalkbrenner supplied 10 points (5-6 FG), 11 rebounds, two blocks and one assist in 27 minutes during Wednesday’s 136-117 win over Brooklyn. He’s currently on a 4 year/$10M contract that expires in 2028-2029. https://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/4576060/ryan-kalkbrenner
Option #3
6’10” PF Moussa Diabate, who is on an expiring contract -AND- Charlotte’s 2026 2nd Rd pick, via Denver or Golden State, whichever is higher. https://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/4433249/moussa-diabate
That was an excellent article by our author. Thanks for giving the information transparently and explaining all the nuances of what could be called a scandal. As pertaining to the Heat, the Hornets and the league are going to have to explain their positions on why no information was given prior to this trade. Unless there is other information made available, the Heat appear to be an aggrieved party. Hopefully, some compensation will be offered.
The pick back would be a start