Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier has been arrested as part of an FBI-led sports betting and game manipulation probe, according to a breaking report from ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The arrest reportedly took place early Thursday morning, with the Eastern District of New York confirming that a press conference will be held at 10 a.m. ET to formally announce the details of the case. FBI Director Kash Patel is expected to speak at the briefing, which insiders say could include multiple arrests tied to a wider sports gambling network.
The news marks a dramatic turn for Rozier, who had already been under federal scrutiny for months in connection to an illegal gambling operation linked to the Jontay Porter scandal.
Earlier this year, it was reported that Rozier was being investigated for potential game manipulation during his time with the Charlotte Hornets in 2023, specifically in relation to suspicious betting activity surrounding one particular game.
That game, a 2023 matchup between the Hornets and the New Orleans Pelicans, was flagged after federal investigators uncovered that a professional gambler placed 30 bets on Rozier’s player props in just 46 minutes, all focused on the under for his points, rebounds, and assists. According to leaked documents, those bets were placed across multiple sportsbooks, raising immediate red flags for betting regulators.
The suspicious part came next. Rozier exited that same game just 10 minutes in, citing a foot injury, finishing with five points, four rebounds, and two assists, all comfortably below the lines the gambler had wagered against.
The timing and accuracy of the bets triggered an integrity alert from the NBA’s monitoring system, which automatically reports irregular betting patterns to both league officials and law enforcement.
At the time, Rozier denied any wrongdoing, calling the situation a coincidence and bad timing, but federal investigators clearly didn’t see it that way. Thursday’s arrest suggests that the investigation, which had gone quiet over the summer, reached the point where the FBI was ready to act.
The case is being compared to the Malik Beasley investigation earlier this year, which also involved federal scrutiny into potential gambling-related misconduct. Beasley was eventually cleared of direct involvement in betting but remains unsigned.
For Terry Rozier, the implications could be even more severe. According to early reports, the FBI probe involves alleged wire fraud, insider information, and possible coordination between athletes and professional gamblers to manipulate outcomes or individual performances. If convicted, Rozier could face both federal charges and a lifetime ban from the NBA.
Rozier, 31, was traded to the Miami Heat in January 2024 and had become a valuable piece of their rotation, averaging 10.6 points and 2.6 assists last season. The Heat have not yet issued a statement, but league officials are reportedly monitoring the situation closely.
This marks the latest blow in what’s becoming a troubling trend for the NBA, as the league continues to tighten its policies around gambling integrity. The Jontay Porter case earlier last year, which resulted in Porter’s lifetime ban, has already put the NBA under heightened scrutiny from both fans and federal regulators.
With Terry Rozier’s arrest, the message from the FBI appears clear: the line between betting and basketball is being watched more closely than ever. And for players, even the perception of involvement may now come with devastating consequences.
