Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier pleaded not guilty in federal court for his alleged role in an insider sports-betting scheme in which he’s accused of altering his performance to benefit illegal gambling.
Rozier, 31, appeared before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York Monday, Dec. 8 for his formal arraignment on charges of wire fraud and money laundering. He also participated in a pretrial hearing later Monday afternoon at the courthouse, which is located in Brooklyn.
Rozier arrived to the courthouse wearing a grey suit and white shirt, flanked by his attorney, Jim Trusty. When asked if he had any comment by reporters on the scene, Trusty declined.
Rozier was arrested Oct. 23, hours before FBI director Kash Patel and U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Joseph Nocella Jr. announced indictments in a press conference. Rozier was one of more than 30 defendants arrested as part of a pair of explosive alleged illegal gambling scandals that linked three current and former prominent NBA figures.
Current Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and former player Damon Jones are the other two. Both pleaded not guilty during appearances in the same federal court in November.
Rozier and Billups have both been placed on unpaid leave. Rozier’s salary will be held in escrow; if cleared in the federal probe, he will receive all missed payments in full.
In a previous statement issued through his attorney, Rozier has denied the allegations.
“Terry is not a gambler, but he is not afraid of a fight, and he looks forward to winning this fight,” Trusty said on Oct. 23.
What are the charges Terry Rozier is facing?
According to the indictment, Rozier, Jones and others allegedly committed fraud by betting based on insider information about NBA athletes and teams from around December 2022 to March 2024.
The non-public information included when players would be sitting out future games or when they would pull themselves out early based on purported injuries or illnesses.
Rozier is accused of manipulating his performance during an NBA game to benefit illegal betting. The game took place on March 23, 2023, when Rozier was a member of the Charlotte Hornets.
He had averaged 35.3 minutes and 21.1 points per game that season, and entered the night with no injury designation. He started the game, but played only 9:34 minutes before he left the game with a supposed foot injury.
He did not return and would subsequently miss the remaining eight games of the season. That night, Rozier took just four shot attempts, making two of them, and scored five points, while adding four rebounds and two assists.
According to the indictment, Rozier informed his childhood friend, De’Niro Laster, that he “was going to prematurely remove himself from the game in the first quarter due to a supposed injury and not return to play further.”
Per the indictment, Laster then allegedly sold the information about Rozier’s participation to multiple co-conspirators so they could place fraudulent wagers.
U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Joseph Nocella Jr. called the alleged setup, “one of the most brazen sports corruption schemes since online sports betting became widely legalized in the United States.”
Who is Terry Rozier?
Roizer played college basketball for the Louisville Cardinals and was selected as the 16th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft by the Boston Celtics. He spent four years with the Celtics before being traded to the Charlotte Hornets in 2019 as part of a sign-and-trade deal that sent Kemba Walker to Boston. Roizer remained with the Hornets until January 2024, when he was traded to the Miami Heat in exchange for Kyle Lowry and a 2027 first-round draft pick.
Rozier is currently part of the Miami Heat’s roster, but he did not play in the season opener against the Orlando Magic due to a coach’s decision. Rozier averaged 10.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists in the 2024-25 regular season.