Ex-NBA player Damon Jones pleads guilty in federal illegal gambling probe

NEW YORK -- Damon Jones, a former NBA player and assistant coach, became the first to plead guilty among the 34 defendants in the Department of Justice's sprawling NBA gambling and poker game ring cases. Jones pleaded guilty Tuesday in a Brooklyn federal courthouse to two charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud -- one for his role in an NBA illegal sports betting scheme and another for participating in a rigged poker game ring -- that were brought by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York last fall. It is a hard fall for Jones, who was a well-traveled but memorable role player during an 11-year NBA career in which he made more than $21 million. Federal prosecutors said that he used his relationships and status as a former player to provide privileged information to a group of sports gamblers who wagered on NBA games, and that he also participated as a lure for potential victims in a rigged poker game ring. He had been facing four different felony counts, but pleaded guilty Tuesday to two of them. The other two charges were dropped. Jones told a federal judge that he "provided insider information" to sports gamblers using his relationships around the league. Jones had been indicted for selling non-public information on prominent Los Angeles Lakers players during his time around the team as a volunteer coach, including trading information on LeBron James. He also admitted to taking part in the rigged poker game ring and serving as a "face card," whose role in the scheme was to attract players who would be cheated out of money. Jones said he played in three games from 2020 through 2023 -- two in Miami and one in the Hamptons. Jones was paid for participating in the games. "I knew these games were rigged and players were being cheated," Jones said. He now awaits sentencing, which is set for Jan. 6, 2027. Jones, known as a gregarious figure in NBA circles, was quiet and somber Tuesday in court. Wearing a black suit and black dress shirt, Jones listened and hardly spoke as a judge took his plea and questioned him to ensure that Jones understood what he was agreeing to during the roughly hour-and-a-half proceeding. Jones rarely said more than a declarative "Yes, sir" to the judge's questions. Jones faces considerable time in prison. He could be sentenced to between 21 and 27 months in prison for the charge in the NBA insider information case, and 63 to 78 months for the charge in the poker game case, though prosecutors agreed to recommend to the judge overseeing the case that he should receive 15 months less for accepting their plea offer by April 30. "I would like to sincerely apologize to the court, my family, my peers and the National Basketball Association," Jones said after his plea in the insider information case. His plea came a day after Terry Rozier made his latest appearance in the same courthouse. Rozier attended a hearing about whether a judge should dismiss the charges against him from the insider information indictment, but prosecutors for New York's Eastern District revealed that they intend to bring two new charges against him next month, and alleged that they have evidence that Rozier solicited and accepted a bribe. Rozier, who was waived by the Miami Heat earlier this month after spending the season on indefinite leave, has pleaded not guilty to charges that he told a friend that he would come out of a March 2023 NBA game early; the friend then sold that information to the same sports gambling syndicate Jones worked with. Chauncey Billups, the Hall of Fame point guard and Portland Trail Blazers head coach (on leave), is also facing charges for taking part in the same rigged poker game ring that Jones was involved in and also serving as a former pro athlete used to attract potential victims. He has pleaded not guilty. Another defendant, Marves Fairley, is set to plead guilty as well, according to a court document filed Monday. Fairley was charged with key roles in the NBA insider information case and for his part in running an alleged widespread college basketball point-shaving ring. The Athletic has reached out to an attorney for Fairley for comment and will update this story if there is a response.