In a bombshell development shaking the NBA, Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, and former NBA player and coach Damon Jones were among 31 people arrested Thursday as part of a sweeping FBI investigation into organized crime and illegal gambling.
According to Fox News Digital, the operation—code-named “Operation Zhen Diagram”—targeted a nationwide gambling network allegedly tied to members of the La Cosa Nostra crime families, accused of defrauding victims of millions of dollars through poker schemes and sports betting.
Federal investigators say proceeds from the operation were laundered through complex channels, including cryptocurrency transactions designed to evade law enforcement detection.
Sources told Fox News that Rozier’s arrest was tied to NBA betting activity, while Billups—an NBA champion and Hall of Famer—was allegedly involved in high-stakes poker games linked to the criminal ring.
The FBI revealed that a confidential informant recorded over 3,000 phone calls and meetings, introducing undercover agents to key suspects and even taking part in a rigged poker game using tampered shuffling devices.
Billups, who coached from the sidelines Wednesday night against the Timberwolves, and Rozier, who missed Miami’s game versus Orlando, have not yet commented on the charges.
This explosive case—bridging the worlds of professional basketball and organized crime—has sent shockwaves through the sports community and raised serious questions about the NBA’s internal gambling policies.
