October 23rd - According to previous reports, Miami Heat player Terry Rozier, Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, and former NBA player Damon Jones have been arrested on gambling charges.
Subsequently, at a press conference held by the FBI, further information was disclosed, including that Lakers player LeBron James did not play in the Milwaukee Bucks vs. Lakers game on February 9, 2023, due to ankle soreness.
The indictment alleges that James' friend Damon Jones (not a formal Lakers employee) sold or attempted to profit from non-public information to allow others (including alleged co-conspirators Eric Earnest and Marves Fairley) to place bets based on which players would not play or would withdraw early.
Before the February 9, 2023, Lakers vs. Bucks game, Jones texted an unnamed co-conspirator, learning that a player would be absent and suggesting they bet on the Bucks, even though the player had not yet appeared on the injury report. Jones also provided information about the 2023-24 Lakers season, including information about "Player 4," whom the Department of Justice described as one of the Lakers' best players that season.
However, James subsequently missed the Lakers' next two games and did not return until February 15, 2023, the Lakers' final game before the All-Star break.
