Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones this week became the first person to plead guilty in the far-reaching federal gambling case that has engulfed several former pro basketball players. The plea came a day after prosecutors announced their intention to file additional charges against former Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, connected to the belief that Rozier, per the attorney quoted by The Athletic, “solicited and accepted a bribe.”
Jones pleaded guilty Tuesday in a New York City federal courthouse to two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. One count was connected to bets made with online sports books using information about NBA players and their likelihood to not play provided by Jones; the second was connected to Jones’s role in helping attract dumb money to rigged poker games. According to the prosecution, Jones was one of the people used as “face cards” to lure “fish”—weaker or inexperienced poker players—into attending these games, which also were connected to several organized crime families.
As for the sports betting, prosecutors said that Jones was among several people who passed along “non-public information related to NBA games” to help other people place bets. (The government has brought similar charges against Terry Rozier relating to his time with the Charlotte Hornets.) In return for the information, someone like Jones would get a flat fee or a share of the profits. Jones did this multiple times during the 2022–2023 and 2023-2024 NBA seasons. (Jones worked as an assistant coach for the Lakers during 2022 and 2023.)
Prosecutors provided the following details as one example in their indictment:
For example, on or about February 9, 2023, the Lakers played the Milwaukee Bucks (the “February 9 game”). On the morning of the February 9 Game, the defendant Damon Jones sent a text message to co-onspirator 9, writing: “Get a big bet on Milwaukee tonight before the information is out! [Player 3] is out tonight. Bet enough so Djones can eat to [sic] now!!!” At the time Jones provided this non-public information about player 3 to co-conspirator 9, player 3 was not ruled out on the NBA’s injury report for the February 9 game. Due to a lower body injury, player 3 did not play in the February 9 game, which the Lakers lost.
Per the Los Angeles Times, player 3 is LeBron James, who was a late scratch from that game with an injured foot. The Times reported that “Jones and James were considered good friends for years” but “a person close to James” told the publication that the future Hall of Famer “didn’t know that Jones was selling injury information to gamblers placing bets.”
Another case of Jones passing along information came in 2024, per the indictment:
Player 4, an individual whose identity is known to the grand jury, was one of the Lakers’ best players during the 2023-2024 NBA season. Prior to the January 15 game, the defendant Damon Jones claimed to have learned from the trainer for players 3 and 4 that player 4 was injured and was only going to play a limited number of minutes and/or his performance would likely be affected in the game because of the injury. Jones shared this non-public information with the defendant Eric Earnest, who then sent a text message to the defendant Marves Fairley stating, “Hit me asap got one for u dude say he got some info.” Earnest then shared the non-public information about player 4 with Fairley. Fairley paid Jones approximately $2,500, through an intermediary, via a peer-to-peer mobile payment platform, accompanied by the message: “fee.”
The Jan. 15 bet didn’t work out for the bettor. Per the Times, player 4 was Anthony Davis, who played in a Lakers victory. Afterward, Fairley asked Jones, via Earnest, for his money back. The indictment didn’t say if Jones paid him back, but noted that Jones “reaffirmed” to Earnest that his information had been credible.
Sentencing for Jones is scheduled for January of next year.
As for the case against Rozier, it might be awhile before more information comes out. Per The Athletic, the evidence will go before a grand jury, and prosecutors believe the new charge will be filed sometime next month. Rozier has pleaded not guilty to the original charges.
In Earlier Coverage
