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Miami Heat Guard Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups have been arrested in connection with a federal investigation into sports betting, people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Thursday.
The exact allegations or charges against him were not immediately known. The two people spoke to the AP about Rozier on condition of anonymity because they could not publicly discuss details of the investigation. One of these people also told the AP about Billups’ arrest.
nba There was no immediate comment. The league has previously investigated Rozier and is still monitoring his actions. detroit player Malik Beasley, one of the sources told the AP.
Rozier was in uniform when the Heat played the Magic in Orlando on Wednesday evening, although he did not play in the game. He was taken into custody in Orlando Thursday morning. The team did not immediately comment on the arrest.
Rozier’s attorney, Jim Trusty, left a message Thursday. Trustees previously told ESPN that Rozier was told a preliminary investigation showed he did nothing wrong after meeting with NBA and FBI officials in 2023, the sports network reported.
FBI Director Kash Patel And other law enforcement officials were expected to provide more details at a news conference Thursday.
The case was brought by the same U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn that previously prosecuted former NBA player Jonte Porter. The former Toronto Raptors center pleaded guilty to charges that he withdrew from games early, claiming illness or injury, in order to win big by betting on players who performed below expectations.
One game that is in question involving Rozier was played on March 23, 2023, a matchup between the Hornets and the New Orleans Pelicans. Rozier played the first 9 minutes, 36 seconds of that game – and not only did not return that night, citing a foot problem, but did not play again that season. charlotte There were eight games remaining and he was not in the playoff race, so it didn’t seem particularly unusual that Rozier was shut down for the final game of the season.
In that March 23 game, Rozier finished with five points, four rebounds and two assists in the opening period – a productive quarter, but well below his usual total output for an entire game.
Online posts from a still from March 23, 2023 show that some bettors were angry with sportsbooks that evening when it became clear that Rozier was not going to return to the Charlotte-New Orleans game after the first quarter, with many taking to social media to say that there was some “vague” talk regarding prop bets tied to his stats for that night.