NBA Commissioner Adam Silver was present at Madison Square Garden during a recent New York Knicks game against the Boston Celtics. During the second quarter, he made his first public comments regarding the gambling scandal affecting the league. “My initial reaction was I was deeply disturbed,” Silver stated. “There’s nothing more important to the league and its fans than the integrity of the competition. I had a pit in my stomach. It was very upsetting.”

Recently, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, and former player Damon Jones were arrested by the FBI as part of a far-reaching investigation into illegal sports betting and rigged poker games.

The Department of Justice has filed two indictments, one concerning illegal sports betting and the other for rigged poker games. Rozier was named in the betting indictment, while Jones appeared in both; Billups only faced mention in the poker indictment. Allegations of illegal sports betting are particularly concerning for the NBA, raising questions about the integrity of the sport.

**“Because bets were placed through legal betting companies, they picked up abberational behavior around a particular game in March of ‘23.” ** Silver explained the differentiation made during the league’s investigation of Rozier’s actions during a March 2023 game, stating:

“While there was abberational betting, we frankly couldn’t find anything.”

Rozier and Billups are now on indefinite leave from their respective positions, with Tiago Splitter appointed as the interim coach of the Trail Blazers.