Shaquille O'Neal said he was “ashamed” of the people involved in gambling scandal that rocked the NBA on Thursday.
Charles Barkley called the two defendants in the case “stupid.”
Kenny Smith said the situation was “very unfortunate.”
The day after “Inside the NBA“crew debuted on ESPNthree analysts, plus host Ernie Johnson, had a huge story to discuss that had little to do with the actual game of basketball.
On Thursday morning, federal prosecutors unsealed two indictments that laid out separate fraud schemes involving sports betting and poker games. More than 30 people were detained, including a former Clippers player and current head coach of Portland Chauncey Billupswho was accused of being part of a plot to fix high-stakes card games run by mafia families.
Also arrested were Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, who is accused of participating in a scheme to provide private inside information to the NBA to help others profit from online betting, and retired player Damon Jones, who is charged with participating in both schemes.
“All these guys knew what was at stake, and I’m just ashamed that they put themselves, their family and the NBA in this position,” O’Neal said during Thursday’s broadcast. “We all know the rules. We all know the letter of the law. And it's just unfortunate – you know, innocent until proven guilty, but usually when the FBI has something, they grab you.”
He added: “I know Chauncey. I know Damon very well, played with Damon… I'm ashamed that these guys would put their families and their careers at risk. There's an old saying: all money ain't good money. So if you make $9 million, how much more do you need? Especially if you know you get caught, you could go to jail, lose your career, create a bad one image for yourself, your family or other people. NBA.”
Smith noted that “gambling is an addiction that can cause you to make illogical decisions,” but Barkley opined that the addiction had nothing to do with the decision Jones and Rozier made to help others make fraudulent bets.
“This has nothing to do with addiction. These guys are stupid,” Barkley said. “Why are they stupid? You can't fix basketball games under any circumstances. Under no circumstances. … For example, Rozier makes $26 million. He makes bets, he gives people information or he quits the games – what benefit does he get by quitting the game to get bad luck?”
Barkley added: “You can't fix ball games. Like I said, this is separate from Chauncey, but the idea of guys making all this money and providing information – come on, man, stop it. It has nothing to do with addiction. It's just complete stupidity on the part of these two guys.”
Billups – a five-time All-Star who was the 2004 NBA Finals MVP with the Detroit Pistons and is in his fifth season as Portland's coach – and 10-year NBA veteran Rozier were placed on leave, effective immediately, the league announced Thursday.
Billups' attorney issued a statement Thursday evening strongly denying the allegations against his client.
“Anyone who knows Chauncey Billups knows he is an honest man,” said attorney Chris Haywood. “Decent people do not deceive or deceive others.”
Rozier's lawyer said in a statement Thursday that his client will fight the charges.
“Terry's not a gambler, but he's not afraid of a fight,” Jim Trusty said, “and he's looking forward to winning the fight.”
Jones spent three seasons with LeBron James on the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2005 to 2008 and was an assistant coach during the Lakers star's second stint in Cleveland. In one of the indictments, prosecutors allege Jones was the Lakers' unofficial coach from 2022 to 2023 when he used inside information to bet on sports.
