Report: Lakers, LeBron seemingly caught in crossfire of gambling scandal

Over 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and former Cleveland Cavaliers guard and assistant Damon Jones — have been arrested as part of investigations into an alleged sports betting scandal and rigged poker games.

Six defendants are accused of being involved in the sports betting case (including Rozier) while over 30 are accused of being involved in the poker scandal (including Billups). There are three people, including Jones, who are said to be involved in both cases.

During a press conference held by the FBI on Thursday, four NBA franchises were named as teams that were gambled on as part of the betting scandal. Along with the Toronto Raptors, Charlotte Hornets and Portland Trail Blazers, the Los Angeles Lakers were mentioned, with other teams also seemingly at play but not named specifically.

Jones’ case has close ties to the storied Lakers franchise. The Athletic shared lots of details in that regard. During the 2022-23 season, Jones, who had restricted access to the Lakers to work with star forward LeBron James, allegedly shared info on James’ playing status with gamblers, something James was unaware of.

Jones also allegedly shared info on a top Lakers player during the 2023-24 season about an upcoming game, though the tip turned out to be wrong. It’s unclear if there were also other instances of similar behavior.

While the Lakers should thank their lucky stars that no player or member of their coaching staff has been arrested, the fact that they were one of the teams named by the FBI certainly doesn’t bring forth any positive publicity.

The news that the Lakers were among the teams that were bet on illegally comes in the wake of them losing their season opener to the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday. Los Angeles was without James and lost by 10 points despite a 43-point performance from star guard Luka Doncic.

The Lakers are looking to get their first win of the season in their upcoming game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday. Minnesota won its opening contest of the season against the Trail Blazers on Wednesday.