Jul 13, 2017; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers Summer League head coach Damon Jones gestures during an NBA Summer League game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Thomas & Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Former Cavaliers player and assistant coach arrested for illegal sports gambling

Originally posted on Cleveland Cavaliers on SI
By John Hobbs | Last updated Oct 23, 2025 11:23 AM ET

A former Cleveland Cavaliers player and assistant coach is one of six individuals who have been charged in an illegal poker operation involving NBA insiders.

Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier are among the others who have also been charged in separate, but related, illegal gambling cases, according to law enforcement sources.

Rozier was connected after suspicious betting patterns surfaced around a game that was played in March 2023.

Trail Blazers coach Billups faces charges linked to an illegal poker operation with ties to organized crime, unrelated to his coaching work. He took charge of Portland’s game with Minnesota on Wednesday.

In total, around 34 people are said to have been arrested. The arrests were the result of a lengthy investigation, said to have taken years, covering 11 states and involving tens of millions of dollars, FBI director Kash Patel said.

Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups has been charged in an illegal poker operation tied to the Mafia, law enforcement sources have told @ABC News.

Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was arrested in a separate but related betting case.

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— ABC News (@ABC) October 23, 2025

On the Cavs side, former assistant coach and player Damon Jones has been charged with being part of a criminal gambling operation that allegedly used inside information to place wagers related to NBA basketball games.

Jones, played 11 seasons in the NBA before moving into coaching. He went undrafted in the 1997 NBA Draft but eventually went on to play for the New Jersey Nets, Boston Celtics, Golden State Warriors and Detroit Pistons, among several others.

The two-way guard signed for Cleveland in 2005 after posting career scoring averages with the Miami Heat. Jonest was later traded to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2008. He averaged 6.6 points, shooting 39.3 percent from three-point land in his three years with the Cavs.

Overall, Jones played for a total of ten teams throughout his professional career.

After retiring in 2012, Jones joined Tyronn Lue's coaching staff in Cleveland from 2016 to 2018 and was part of the Cavs team that won the NBA championship in a memorable Finals series against the Golden State Warriors.

The probe into Rozier was previously linked to the one that resulted in Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter receiving a lifetime NBA ban.

An investigation led by the NBA confirmed that Porter leaked "confidential information to sports bettors," limited his playing time in certain games for betting purposes and bet on NBA games, leading to his lifetime ban.

Despite this being a developing story, it has been reported that Jones, Rozier, and Billups have all reportedly cooperated with investigators but face serious legal challenges ahead as proceedings continue.

The NBA is also said to have cooperated with the ongoing case.

This article first appeared on Cleveland Cavaliers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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