Former NBA player Damon Jones provided non-public injury information about the status of two players in NBA games, according to allegations listed in Thursday's federal indictments related to a wide-ranging gambling scandal announced by FBI. Those players may have been LeBron James and Anthony Davis, based on public injury information USA TODAY Sports reviewed from the dates of those games.
An indictment that led to the arrest of Jones and current Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier alleges that between December 2022 and 2024 they were part of a scheme to defraud betting companies by providing and using non-public information related to NBA games. Jones is accused of selling non-public information for the purpose of placing illegal bets before at least two Los Angeles Lakers games during the 2022-23 and 2023-24 NBA seasons.
The Justice Department charges state Jones used his relationship and access with the Lakers and their top players to help orchestrate the operation, with specific reference to a Feb. 9, 2023 game between the Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks that occurred two days after James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's all-time leading scorer.
Jones allegedly sent a text message the morning of the game to alert gamblers that "Player 3" would not be playing, according to the indictment. At the time, Player 3 had not yet been ruled out of the game.
