Basketball has long been a primary focus of online sports betting, and the NBA is at the forefront of everything. People have been betting on it for a long time and will continue to do so, but we at Nostrabet.com believe that the situation may change, at least for the short term, due to the NBA scandal from a few days ago.
Terry Rozier and Chauncey Billups are currently at the centre of federal investigations. The latter is related to a prop-betting scandal, and it seems like it is a pretty big thing, considering the coverage it has. We have been in this industry long enough to know that this could affect the booming prop-bet ecosystem and NBA betting as a whole. That is why we’ll explore everything that happened and how it could affect one of our favourite sports.
The Scandal – What Actually Happened
Before sharing more information about everything else, we need to take a step back and examine what actually happened. Based on the information we have, investigations in early 2025 revealed that some individuals used inside information to exploit prop-markets in betting.
It appears that Terry Rozier would inform his friend in advance that he planned to claim an injury and exit a game early during the 2022-23 season. This was the time when the player was a part of the Charlotte Hornets.
After having the information, Rozier’s friend tipped off other bettors, and the latter wagered on the “under” line related to Rozier’s points total. Since he would go out earlier in the match, he would always underperform, and these bettors would end up winning their bet. According to the information, the insider bets resulted in close to $250,000 in winnings.
Following the initial reveal, the authorities decided to conduct a thorough investigation and launched the so-called “Operation Nothing But Bet”. It became clear that there were a total of 34 people taking part in it across 11 states, and this includes the likes of Billups and Damon Jones, a former assistant coach. Once the investigation was over, there were allegations of money laundering and wire fraud, as well as the use of non-public NBA info.
Why is This NBA Scandal Such a Big Deal?
Match-fixing is nothing new in the world of sports betting, even though it is not that common in basketball. With that said, the NBA betting scandal is different than anything else so far because of its scale and subtlety.
Unlike most other match-fixings, this one did not focus on the outcomes of the matches. Instead, people decided to abuse the micro-markets, such as individual stats and specific prop lines.
What’s even worse is that this is not the first case of an NBA betting scandal. Jontay Porter was permanently banned after it became clear that he also provided inside information to bettors.
Aside from the scale and names involved, another thing that is important to realize is that many sportsbooks failed to detect that there was something wrong. In other words, the scandal casts a shadow on the entire architecture of prop-bet markets and how they work. We would not be surprised if bookies decide to make big changes in the future.
Prop Bets – The Economics Behind it
We want to share a few words about prop bets because they are a lot different from the traditional betting options. The idea here is to wager on a “granular” aspect of the game, such as the number of points a given player will score, when they will reach a double-double, how many three-pointers will be made, and so on.
Considering they are very attractive, it is no surprise that sportsbooks rapidly expanded their offers. Despite being appealing to many players and attracting new clients, these markets also expose new vulnerabilities, as mentioned so far. The Rozier case is precisely in this situation and we firmly believe it will leave its mark in the future.
NBA’s Relationship with Betting
The NBA has long been the most popular choice for basketball bettors worldwide, but not so much in the US. However, after the changes in the local legislation and the arrival of many big bookmakers, things have changed. The NBA has partnership deals with some of the biggest names and has become the key driver of traffic for them.
The statistics are clear – sports betting in the US is booming and has already crossed the $100 billion mark. Unsurprisingly, the NBA is among the top three leagues by volume and it will most likely continue to be in this position, despite the recent controversies.
How are Sportsbooks and Leagues Responding to the Scandal
The recent NBA scandal will have a significant impact on the sports betting industry in the USA. The business is booming in this part of the world and fans expect bookies to take serious measures, such as removing certain people markets altogether. This is a huge drawback for sports betting fans because they will have fewer options to choose from.
Another change we expect is to have increased leverage. The NBA will likely collaborate more closely with law enforcement in the future. This could lead to a lot of different things, such as:
- Tighten AML/KYC Compliance
- Delaying odds posting
- Restricting Betting Size
An interesting fact is that many bettors have already complained that some bookies have removed or modified prop lines for games in the NBA. Some users even noticed that the odds were shortened or withdrawn.
What does the NBA Betting Scandal Mean for Your Strategy
The NBA is one of the world’s most popular basketball leagues and many people’s go-to option. Sadly, it seems that even these kinds of competitions are not fully secure, as match-fixing is a real problem.
If you are one of the many basketball betting fans considering this league, there are a few things we recommend:
- Be very cautious with plater-prop bets. Even though some of them have really good odds, as we’ve seen, they are not always secure. Additionally, many bookmakers may decide to reduce the odds for some options, making them less likely to be worthwhile.
- Bookies will restrict prop bets more aggressively than before. This means you can try to “shop around” and find an online sports betting platform that will provide you with what you need.
- Be careful when reading betting tips. The case with Rozier reviews how insider info can be weaponised, so you have to make sure that the platform providing the tips is legitimate.
- Treat prop bets as higher volatility wagers. Due to what happened, it’s definitely a good idea to treat these things as high-volatility wagers, meaning you should allocate a small amount of money.
How will Sports Betting Change After the Accident
As mentioned earlier, we believe that this NBA betting scandal will have a serious effect on the industry, especially in the US. This is one of the “newest” markets (in terms of online sports betting at least) and also the largest in the world, so every minor change here has a huge effect on everything.
Even though it is hard to tell the future, there are a few aspects we believe will happen:
- Sportsbook Collaborations. The fact that leagues like the NBA can have match-fixing scandals is troublesome for bookies. That’s why we believe there is a good chance they will start collaborating and share data, and report suspicious bets. Doing something like that will allow them to fight against these practices.
- There will be more restrictive props. As mentioned, some bookies will simply limit specific player-prop markets entirely or until they find ways to monitor them properly.
- Much stronger penalties. Nowadays, online bookmakers have penalties, but they rarely enforce them. After this accident, however, we believe that it is a matter of time before they introduce things like criminal charges. We may even have new kinds of penalties.
- Regulatory changes. While we don’t elieve that there will be any regulatory changes in the US, this accident could affect other regions. For example, we may see tighter control over who can offer their services in a specific part of the world. There may also be restrictions in terms of what kind of markets they offer.
Conclusion
We can safely say that player boom has unlocked new dimensions for people who like betting on sports. Sadly, incidents like this one put these kinds of markets at risk because they raise questions about their fairness. Insider information can ruin the experience for a lot of people, so those interested in betting on something have to be vigilant.
As for the NBA, the scandal will definitely leave a mark on its reputation in the sports betting industry. It will take some time before people forget about everything, but we’ll see how it goes. Despite that, we expect it will continue to be among the go-to options for basketball bettors worldwide.
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