Ex-NBA Player & Houston Cougar Arrested by FBI

The NBA is facing a massive scandal related to betting, as several figures active in the league have been arrested by the FBI. Despite no present ties to the league, former Houston Cougar, NBA player and Galveston, Texas native Damon Jones has been arrested by the FBI, according to Tom Winter and Jonathan Dienst of NBC News.

Jones is reportedly being charged in a separate case from as many as 31 other people being charged Thursday in relation to illegal gambling, according to ABC News and Fox News. So far, the other named figures arrested by the FBI on Thursday include Miami Heat Guard Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers head coach and former Detroit Pistons star Chauncey Billups.

Jones’ charges are related to criminal gambling operations that use inside information to place illegal wagers. He reportedly fed the information to co-defendants who in turn placed sports bets, according to Shams Charania and David Purdum of ESPN.

FBI Director Kash Patel will be announcing charges at a press conference on Thursday in New York City.

Rozier’s name has been tied to rumors of involvement in illegal gambling for months now, for which he was likely held out of Miami’s season opener against the Orlando Magic on Wednesday. Jones and Billups, however, are new names in relation to the NBA’s professional gambling scandal. Billups’ is reportedly tied to an illegal poker operation that’s tied to the Mafia, according to ESPN.

In 2024, former Toronto Raptors center Jontay Porter was banned for life by the NBA over his role in illegal sports gambling, where he manipulated his performance in games he appeared in.

UPDATE:

Jones is reportedly the only NBA-related figure to be charged in both the illegal poker games and the illegal sports betting operation at this time, according to CBS Sports. He allegedly passed along information related to two Los Angeles Lakers games during the 2022-23 NBA season, as he had restricted access to the team.

Jones used his relationship with former teammate James, currently playing for the Lakers, to obtain information on whether or not the future hall of famer would play on certain nights. He’d then allegedly text a co-conspirator to make sure they bet on a game, prior to James’ status being announced publicly. James was reportedly unaware of Jones sharing this information with others.

Jones, like Billups, was used as a “big name” to draw poker players into rigged games.

About Damon Jones

Jones, 49, grew up in Galveston and attended Ball High School, where he played for the Golden Tornadoes basketball team, graduating in 1994. From there he’d join the University of Houston Cougars men’s basketball team for three seasons, before leaving early to declare for the 1997 NBA Draft.

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Going undrafted, Jones began his pro basketball career bouncing around teams in the CBA. His first NBA opportunity came in January of 1999, where the Magic signed him coming out of the 1998-99 NBA lockout. He was cut less than two weeks later. He was later re-signed two weeks later by the New Jersey Nets, where he’d play in his first NBA games. He’d also play for the Boston Celtics that season.

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Jones was a respected journeyman around the NBA for much of his career, known for a reliable outside shot, and would typically spend at most a single season with a franchise, until he joined the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2005. He’d spend three seasons in Cleveland, before playing one more NBA season with the Milwaukee Bucks for 2008-09.

After retiring from playing basketball, he would rejoin the Cavaliers as a coach for their G-League team and later serve as an assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers, having a close relationship with star player LeBron James, his former teammate.

Jones was also a member of the 2001-02 Houston Rockets’ training camp team, but was waived prior to the start of the season.

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