Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones, named in a sprawling gambling indictment filed last year, plans to plead guilty.
Via Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic, Jones would be the first defendant in the case to enter a guilty plea. He’s due to appear in court on May 6.
Prosecutors claim that Jones gathered and sold inside information while working as the personal shooting coach to Lakers star LeBron James. Jones also is accused of participating in a ring of rigged poker games.
Others facing charges in the same case include former Heat guard Terry Rozier and former Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups.
The NFL has yet to face a significant gambling scandal since the Supreme Court opened the floodgates for state-by-state sports betting in 2018.
Here’s where I mention that my latest book, Big Shield, takes a fictional look at the potentially very real situation that could arise if/when a football player is compromised by gambling interests seeking to leverage inside information into easy money. The ebook is only 99 cents.
