NBA Gambling Scandal
A major scandal involving the NBA where the FBI arrested 30 people in a sports betting and gambling probe, including players and a coach, for activities like running rigged poker games and insider betting.
First Mentioned
10/25/2025, 12:39:48 AM
Last Updated
10/25/2025, 12:40:22 AM
Research Retrieved
10/25/2025, 12:40:22 AM
Summary
The 2007 NBA Gambling Scandal primarily involved NBA referee Tim Donaghy, who was accused and later admitted to betting on professional basketball games, including those he officiated, across the 2003–04 through 2006–07 seasons. Donaghy claimed to use insider knowledge rather than directly influencing game outcomes. The FBI investigated the matter, leading to Donaghy's guilty plea on August 15, 2007, and a subsequent sentence of 15 months in prison. The scandal also saw the arrest of 30 individuals, including NBA player Chanty Bilips, and highlighted the growing intersection of sports betting and technology, prompting discussions about more transparent models like prediction markets.
Referenced in 1 Document
Research Data
Extracted Attributes
Key Theme 1
Sports betting
Key Theme 2
Technology
Betting Method
Exploited insider knowledge to bet on games he officiated
Primary Figure
Tim Donaghy
Affected League
National Basketball Association (NBA)
Number of Arrests
30 individuals
Key Arrested Player
Chanty Bilips
Investigating Agency
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Sentence for Donaghy
15 months in prison, 3 years of supervised release
Role of Primary Figure
NBA Referee
Legal Outcome for Donaghy
Pleaded guilty to two federal charges
Scope of Betting (Accused)
2005–06 and 2006–07 NBA seasons
Scope of Betting (Admitted)
2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, and 2006–07 NBA seasons
Timeline
- Tim Donaghy began betting on NBA games he officiated, continuing through the 2006-07 season. (Source: Wikipedia)
2003-XX-XX
- Reports of an FBI investigation into NBA referee Tim Donaghy's betting activities were made public. (Source: Wikipedia)
2007-07-XX
- Tim Donaghy pleaded guilty to two federal charges related to the investigation. (Source: Wikipedia)
2007-08-15
- Tim Donaghy was sentenced to 15 months in prison and three years of supervised release. (Source: Wikipedia)
2008-XX-XX
Wikipedia
View on Wikipedia2007 NBA betting scandal
The 2007 NBA betting scandal was a scandal involving the National Basketball Association (NBA) and accusations that an NBA referee used his knowledge of relationships between referees, coaches, players and owners to bet on professional basketball games. In July 2007, reports of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were made public, which alleged that during the 2005–06 and 2006–07 NBA seasons, referee Tim Donaghy bet on games in which he officiated. Donaghy later admitted to betting on games he officiated in each of the 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, and 2006–07 seasons. Donaghy has claimed that instead of using his position as an on-court referee to advance his bets, he exploited his insider knowledge to wager on NBA games, regardless of whether he was officiating them. However, some of Donaghy's co-conspirators cooperated with the government and claimed that they only became involved because Donaghy offered a high win rate on the games which he officiated. Similarly, Donaghy's best friend, Tommy Martino, noted that during most of the scandal's four-year span, Donaghy only offered bets on games which he officiated. Furthermore, Donaghy's betting predictions for the outcomes of games which he did not officiate were typically incorrect, so the co-conspirators generally avoided placing bets on such matches. Researchers with access to Donaghy's offshore betting accounts, electronic betting records, and betting line data have demonstrated that most of the betting activity involved games officiated by Donaghy. On August 15, 2007, Donaghy pleaded guilty to two federal charges related to the investigation. In 2008, he was sentenced to 15 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
Web Search Results
- A timeline of NBA's decade-long embrace of sports betting
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- NBA players, coaches, former stars react to gambling scandal
Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and former NBA player Damon Jones were all arrested as part of the
- Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier arrested in gambling ...
What is every NBA team wearing for its 2025-26 season opener? # Sources - Chauncey Billups, Rozier arrested in gambling cases Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier were arrested Thursday as part of a pair of investigations related to illegal gambling, sources told ESPN's Shams Charania. The Heat lost their season opener to the Magic on Wednesday, when Rozier did not play due to a coach's decision. Also, former Cleveland Cavaliers player and assistant coach Damon Jones was arrested Thursday on charges that he provided inside information about NBA games to co-defendants who used it to place sports bets, according to ABC News.
- NBA Gambling Scandal: What We Know
Chauncey Billups, the head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers, was among the former and current N.B.A. basketball players who were arrested on Thursday in connection with two illegal gambling investigations.Credit...Steph Chambers/Getty Images The sports world was rocked on Thursday by the arrests of Chauncey Billups, head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers, and other N.B.A. figures in connection with gambling schemes, including rigged illegal poker games run by the Mafia. One, related to illegal betting on N.B.A. games using insider information, threatens to cast suspicion over the integrity of the league, which just began its new season two days ago.
- Explaining the NBA gambling investigation involving ...
# NBA gambling scandal, explained: What to know as Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier get arrested, suspended Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones were all arrested Thursday morning as part of a wide-ranging gambling investigation, the FBI announced. Though he was not named in the Rozier indictment, a person referred to as "Co-Conspirator 8" matches Billups' description: "a resident of Oregon" and "an NBA player from approximately 1997 through 2014, and an NBA coach since at least 2021." The indictment alleges that Co-Conspirator 8 supplied information about the Blazers resting key players ahead of a March 24, 2023, contest against the Bulls before it was public.