FBI Arrests NBA Players, Coaches in Gambling Probes

Miami Heat player Terry RozierPhotographer: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

Professional basketball player Terry Rozier told a friend in 2023 that he planned to take himself out of a game early with a minor injury. The friend, Deniro Laster, used the tip to place more than $200,000 in bets predicting Rozier would fall short of his usual point total.

By the next morning, federal prosecutors say, the two men were counting their winnings together in Rozier’s home. The athlete, who was a guard for the National Basketball Association’s Charlotte Hornets at the time, played just nine minutes against the New Orleans Pelicans and checked out.