MAFIA MONEYBALL! This one is wild and it involves the NBA!

WOW this one I never seen coming but looks like total MAFIA MONEYBALL happening as the FBI says it dismantled a “multi-million-dollar gambling ring” allegedly tied to major crime families and NBA players and coaches, calling the fraud “mind-boggling.” 

"This operation involved an expansive effort across 11 states, arresting 34 subjects, including multiple NBA players and coaches, who allegedly took advantage of their own positions of power to rig gambling systems for their own benefit eventually funneling money to La Cosa Nostra, enriching some of the most notorious criminal networks in the world," FBI Director Patel says.

Holy smokes this one will I'm sure involve a lot of people we might know who have taken part in this crime, and to continue this as it's being reported that An FBI investigation code-named "Mafia Moneyball" has led to the arrest of more than 30 people, including NBA coach Chauncey Billups and player Terry Rozier. 

The probe uncovered two separate, but related, criminal gambling schemes involving Mafia crime families, current and former NBA figures, and high-tech cheating devices.

The two investigations were dubbed "Operation Nothing But Net" and "Operation Royal Flush". The FBI Director called the fraudulent activity "mind-boggling," with tens of millions of dollars in total proceeds.

This indictment alleges a scheme to defraud betting companies by using nonpublic, confidential NBA information to place fraudulent wagers.

• Insiders sold information: According to the FBI, current and former NBA players and coaches, including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and former player/assistant coach Damon Jones, provided nonpublic information on game details and player health.
• Targeting prop bets: The confidential information was used to place lucrative "prop bets"—wagers placed on specific player statistics, like points or rebounds. The investigation identified seven different NBA games targeted in this scheme between December 2022 and March 2024.
• Rozier's alleged role: In one instance, while playing for the Charlotte Hornets in March 2023, Rozier allegedly informed co-conspirators he would leave a game early due to a foot issue. Conspirators then placed over $200,000 on his "under" prop bets. Rozier was subsequently ruled out of the game and the rest of the season.
• Jones' alleged role: Damon Jones, a former Cavaliers coach with ties to the Lakers, allegedly provided information in February 2023 that a "prominent" Lakers player would miss a game. The indictment did not name the player, but LeBron James sat out that contest, and Jones encouraged bettors to bet on the opponent.
• Connection to Jontay Porter: The probe overlapped with the investigation that led to a lifetime ban for former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter in 2024. Two defendants from this new indictment are alleged to have threatened Porter to keep him involved in the scheme. 
• Operation Royal Flush: Rigged poker games.
  
  Sophisticated cheating: The criminal enterprises allegedly used high-tech equipment to rig the games, including manipulated shuffling machines, hidden cameras, and X-ray tables that could read cards.

  • Mafia involvement: The games were backed by members of four Mafia families the Gambinos, Bonannos, Genoveses, and Luccheses. They collected debts and enforced payment through intimidation and violence.
  • Celebrity lures: The scheme used well-known public figures, including Chauncey Billups and Damon Jones, as "face cards" to lure unsuspecting victims, or "fish," into the rigged games.
  • Billups' alleged role: Billups, inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2024, was reportedly part of the "cheating team" and was paid for his participation. His lawyers have denied the allegations. The arrests and indictments have sent shockwaves through the NBA, raising serious questions about the integrity of the league and its close relationship with the booming sports gambling industry. 

  • Congressional inquiry: A bipartisan group of congressional representatives has requested a briefing with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver by October 31 to discuss the allegations and any potential regulatory gaps.
  • League response: The scandals have intensified the debate over the regulation of sports betting. Silver has already called for more stringent rules on prop bets and criticized the volume of sports betting promotion.
• This separate but related indictment describes an illegal poker operation backed by multiple New York Mafia families, which defrauded wealthy victims of at least $7 million. 
  
  
• • Suspensions: The NBA has placed Billups and Rozier on indefinite leave, and both are now awaiting trial.
  • Congressional inquiry: A bipartisan group of congressional representatives has requested a briefing with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver by October 31 to discuss the allegations and any potential regulatory gaps.
  • League response: The scandals have intensified the debate over the regulation of sports betting. Silver has already called for more stringent rules on prop bets and criticized the volume of sports betting promotion.