Miami Heat star Terry Rozier pleads not guilty in sports betting case

Story by

Cara Tabachnick

Mon, December 8, 2025 at 8:03 PM UTC

2 min read

New York — NBA star Terry Rozier of the Miami Heat pleaded not guilty to federal charges Monday, the last of the basketball players tied to alleged illegal-mafia linked gambling rings to appear before a judge in a Brooklyn federal courtroom.

Rozier appeared before Magistrate Judge Clay H. Kaminsky on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was released on a $3 million bond secured by a home in Florida, for which the court sealed the address.

Rozier was arrested in Orlando on Oct. 23 during a sweeping FBI crackdown in which 34 defendants were snagged across two federal indictments. Federal prosecutors accused Rozier of participating in a scheme which facilitated bets on NBA basketball games that allegedly took advantage of insider information related to injury reports.

Rozier and five other defendants are accused of providing nonpublic information in exchange for a flat fee or a cut of the profits. In one game in particular, prosecutors allege, Rozier told a co-conspirator that he would fake an injury in order to leave a game early.

Federal investigators had been examining unusual betting activity over a Charlotte Hornets and New Orleans Pelicans game on March 23, 2023. Rozier, who played for the Hornets before being traded to the Miami Heat in early 2024, played only 9 minutes and 34 seconds, leaving the game with right foot discomfort. At the time, the NBA said it found no evidence that Rozier violated league rules.

Rozier is not charged in the other indictment, which focuses on an elaborate cheating scheme that allegedly netted more than $7 million from rigged poker games, prosecutors said.

Rozier appeared in court Monday alongside co-defendant Deniro Laster. Prosecutors allege that Laster, a childhood friend of Rozier's, orchestrated the sharing of non-public information and bets between various gambling rings. Laster, who lives in Cleveland, was released on a $50,000 secured bond by his mother and cousin.

Rozier's court appearance comes two weeks after NBA Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups pleaded not guilty to charges of wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering in the poker case.

Former NBA player Damon Jones has been indicted in both cases. He pleaded not guilty earlier this month in both indictments and was released on a $200,000 bond, secured by his parents' Texas home.

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