Former Vancouver Grizzlies player arrested in mafia-linked NBA gambling scandal
A former Vancouver Grizzlies player is at the epicentre of a massive gambling crackdown by the FBI.
Damon Jones, who played for the Grizzlies during their final season in Vancouver back in 2000-01, was arrested by the FBI on Thursday morning.
The FBI’s investigation uncovered two distinct and illicit gambling operations. One was related to a sports corruption scheme, where insider information was used to place bets on NBA games. The other indictment is related to a scheme to rig illegal poker games.
Two other NBA-related persons were arrested on Thursday: former player and current Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and current Miami Heat player Terry Rozier.
Rozier was charged in the sports betting scheme for tipping off bettors that he would be exiting a game from an injury, prior to that actually occurring. Billups was arrested in conjunction with the rigged poker games.
Jones, however, was the only ex-NBA player to be charged in relation to both schemes.
Fun fact about Damon Jones: He scored the final basket ever at a Vancouver Grizzlies home game.
— Rob Williams (@RobTheHockeyGuy) October 23, 2025
The ex-Grizzlies point guard allegedly tipped off bettors about LeBron James sitting out a game on Feb. 9, 2023, according to The Athletic. Jones, a former teammate of James’ and a personal friend, allegedly used that non-public information in an attempt to have bettors profit from the insider information.
The indictment read that Jones texted a co-conspirator saying: “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!!!”
While the report didn’t name James specifically, he was the player who missed the game that Jones was referring to.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, that was just one example of Jones sharing and selling insider information “on numerous occasions about undisclosed information relating to NBA games, such as lineup decisions and pre-release medical information.”
For the poker scandal, one of the draws to lure victims in was that they’d get a chance to play with former NBA players, which allegedly included Jones and Billups. Victims in the poker scheme allegedly lost $7 million, with one victim losing $1.8 million. Some were reportedly threatened or attacked if they failed to pay their debts.
Prosecutors say that Jones earned more than $20 million during his playing and coaching career.
In total, 30 people were arrested, including 13 mafia members.
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