The FBI Says NBA Coaches And Players Worked With The Mafia To Fix Games
The FBI’s latest investigation has rocked the NBA, alleging mafia involvement, rigged poker games, and insider betting schemes that expose how deep gambling runs in professional sports.
The FBI just announced one of the most comprehensive crackdowns on illegal gambling in history, arresting 30 mafia members and three NBA coaches and players.
On March 23, 2023, the FBI alleges that Charlotte Hornets player Terry Rozier told members of the Italian mafia that he would leave a game early due to injury. Those mafia members then placed more than $200,000 of bets on Rozier’s unders for that game, taking home tens of thousands of dollars in profits when Rozier left the game with an apparent injury after just nine minutes. The mafia members were then invited to Rozier’s personal residence, where they gathered to count their cash winnings.
Rozier’s decision to participate in an illegal betting operation after making $160 million in career earnings is a head-scratching one. But that’s not even the craziest part of this story. The FBI’s full investigation reveals multiple indictments, including how NBA players and coaches worked with the mafia to rig poker games, utilizing X-ray poker tables and specialized contact lenses to scam victims out of $7 million.