Silver Says NBA Is Taking Gambling Scandal Seriously, May Look Into
LAS VEGAS (AP) - It is critical for the NBA to be perceived as having stability, Commissioner Adam Silver stated Tuesday, including that the gambling scandals that resulted in the arrests of Miami guard Terry Rozier, Portland coach Chauncey Billups and others are being taken with the utmost severity.
Silver's remarks in a news conference shortly before the start of the NBA Cup final were his first given that Rozier, Billups and others were apprehended in October. He spoke in Las Vegas, a gaming capital that the league has actually used for significant occasions like the Cup last and Summer League for a long time.
"I think the fans care a lot," Silver said. "It ´ s hard to make judgments, either anecdotally over what some fans are stating or what ´ s even on social media. Fans absolutely care. And I mean it when I say, if this game isn ´ t considered as being truthful and the competitors being on the level and at the highest stability, gradually we will lose our fan base. I believe about that. Therefore, I take it incredibly seriously."
The NBA is unsure the length of time the examinations and legal processes surrounding gambling charges faced by Rozier, Billups - a Basketball Hall of Fame conscript - and others will require finished, Silver stated.
But the league will check out the possibility of offering Miami some sort of "satisfying relief" because Rozier currently can ´ t play, Silver included, though he stopped short of saying such a move would be possible.
"This is an unprecedented circumstance," Silver stated.
Miami Heat's Terry Rozier, right, leaves Brooklyn federal court, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
It ´ s a multi-layered concern for the league and the Heat, given that Rozier ´ s$26.6 million wage uses up about 17 % of the group ´ s cap space - which the group still owes Charlotte a first-round pick in either 2027 or 2028 to satisfy the terms of the trade that brought Rozier to Miami. It ´ s unclear who knew that Rozier was under federal examination when the Heat made the trade with the Hornets.
Rozier pleaded innocent previously this month to wire scams and money laundering conspiracy charges originating from allegations that he assisted some friends win bets that focused on his analytical performance in a game played in March 2023, when he was with Charlotte. Rozier is free on $3 million bond and isn ´ t anticipated back in court till March, and he stays on unsettled leave from the Heat.
Prosecutors say Rozier informed the gamblers that he planned to leave the video game versus the New Orleans Pelicans early with a supposed injury, permitting gamblers to put wagers making them tens of countless dollars. Rozier played the first nine minutes and 36 seconds of the video game before leaving, citing a foot issue. He did not play once again that season and was subsequently traded to the Heat.
Rozier isn ´ t receiving his pay, but his income is still on the Heat ´ s books and is being sent out to an interest-bearing account pending resolution of his case or some other .
"We ´ re going to attempt to work something through, work this out with them," Silver stated. "But there ´ s no apparent solution here. I would simply state that there ´ s no doubt at the moment they have a player that can ´ t perform services for them. ... Obviously, he hasn ´ t been founded guilty of anything yet either - however this is a regrettable scenario. Sometimes there ´ s these unique events and maybe sometimes they require an unique solution."
Billups likewise pleaded innocent last month to charges connected to a separate plan to repair high-stakes, Mafia-backed poker games. Rozier, Billups and former NBA guard Damon Jones were among more than 30 people - consisting of several Mafia figures - jailed in October as part of a vast federal takedown of unlawful gambling operations connected to professional sports.
The league requires annual training for players, coaches and personnel about what's allowed and what isn't permitted relating to gaming, which is now legal in a lot of states. Silver notoriously championed legalization of sports wagering in an op-ed he wrote for The New York Times in 2014.
The scenarios with Rozier and Billups have actually caused a mission for even increased awareness, Silver stated. The league is likewise taking a look at how finest to make sure prop bets based solely on a player's analytical performance - like the ones made on Rozier ´ s March 2023 video game - can be executed relatively.
"We ´ ve been redoubling our efforts at the league workplace, dealing with our teams, looking at every element of our guidelines around sports betting," Silver said. "Exist much better ways to educate the participants? Are there alters we should make in how injuries are reported? ... We're in the procedure as I said right now and dealing with our groups considering anything else we can be doing, if there ´ s any element of our system that requires to be fortified."