Chauncey Billups Pleads Not Guilty in Illegal Gambling Case
Portland Trail Blazers coach and NBA Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups pleaded not guilty on Monday to charges of profiting from rigged poker games. These games involved mob figures and another former NBA player.
Billups, a five-time All-Star and champion with the Detroit Pistons, was processed in a federal court in New York for conspiracy to launder money and wire fraud. Both charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Some of Billups’ co-defendants also face charges for running an illegal gambling business and participating in an extortion conspiracy.
During the brief hearing, Billups only answered the judge’s questions with a “yes” or “no”.
In a subsequent bail hearing, the judge released Billups on a $5 million bail. The NBA Hall of Famer used his Colorado home as collateral, and his daughter Cydney, team and player services manager for the Minnesota Timberwolves, signed as guarantor.
Both Billups and his lawyer, Marc Mukasey, declined to comment as they left the courthouse.
Billups is the most prominent name among the more than 30 defendants in an illegal gambling operation linked to professional sports. The other defendants also appeared in Brooklyn court on Monday.
Prosecutors say the 49-year-old Denver native was involved in a scheme to rig illegal poker games backed by the mafia in Manhattan, Las Vegas, Miami, and the Hamptons.
Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones was also implicated in the scheme, which prosecutors say used sophisticated technology to rig the bets. This technology included machines to shuffle altered cards, hidden cameras in chip trays, special sunglasses, and even X-ray equipment built into the table to read the cards.
Jones was also charged, along with Terry Rozier of the Miami Heat, in a separate scheme that allowed bettors to exploit insider information about players to win bets on NBA games.
Prosecutors allege that the poker scheme in which Billups participated defrauded victims of approximately $7 million, beginning at least in 2019.
According to prosecutors, Billups served as a famous “face” to attract wealthy and unsuspecting players to the games. During a game, the organizers exchanged messages saying that one of the victims “acted as if he wanted Chauncey to have his money” because he was “amazed”.
Prosecutors say Billups, who earned around $106 million during his playing career, received a share of the illicit earnings. After a fixed game in October 2020, $50,000 was transferred directly to him.
The organizers of the scheme also had to share a portion of their profits with the Gambino, Genovese, and Bonanno crime families for operating within the illegal poker games run by New York crime enterprises, according to prosecutors.
The mafia members, in turn, helped commit violent acts, including assaults, extortion, and robbery, to ensure the payment of debts and the continued success of the operation, they said.
Billups was selected as the third pick in the 1997 draft by the Boston Celtics after excelling in college with the Colorado Buffaloes. He played 17 years in the NBA, with stints with the Toronto Raptors, Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, and Los Angeles Clippers.
He is particularly loved in Detroit, where he earned the nickname “Mr. Big Shot” for his ability to score important shots.
Billups was named Finals MVP of the NBA during the Pistons’ championship season in 2004 and his number 1 jersey was retired by the team.
After retiring in 2014, Billups began a career as a television analyst before turning to coaching.
He was hired as Portland’s coach in 2021 and signed a multi-year extension with the Trail Blazers earlier this year, after the team failed to make the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season in 2024. Previously, Billups was an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers.
Following his arrest, he was placed on administrative leave without pay and the Trail Blazers named Tiago Splitter, assistant coach and former NBA player, as interim coach.
As part of his bail agreement, Billups can travel to certain states, but he had to surrender his passport.
The 31 defendants in the betting cases must appear in court again on March 4 for an update on the status of the case.
The U.S. District Judge Ramon Reyes said he expected to begin the trial in September 2026.
