Cheating poker and basketball scandals rock NBA
More than 30 people have been charged in two federal cases known as “Operation Royal Flush” and “Operation Nothing But Net,” prosecutors said.
- Federal prosecutors have charged 20 people in a wide-ranging points-cutting scheme involving college basketball and professional games in China.
- Former Chicago Bulls player Antonio Blakeney is accused of accepting $200,000 for poor performance in games and then recruiting college players.
- The operation allegedly involved 39 players from more than 17 Division I teams and involved millions of dollars being bet on at least 29 games.
- The charges follow another NBA gambling scandal in October that also involved high-stakes gambler Shane Hennen.
Federal prosecutors have secured indictments against 20 people accused of match-fixing Chinese college basketball games and professional games in the wake of the NBA gambling scandal that rocked the sports world in October, according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY Sports.
Sports gamblers operated an extensive point-shaving system in conjunction with players who agreed to underperform in games from 2022 to 2025, according to records released Thursday in Philadelphia.
One of the players named in the indictment is Antonio Blakeney, a former member of the Chicago Bulls who later played for China’s Jiangsu Dragons.
Prosecutors allege that for his involvement in the scheme, Blakeney, 29, received a lump sum of $200,000, and another defendant dropped the cash into a warehouse that Blakeney owned in Florida. Blakeney then continued scouting college players to cut points in NCAA games.
Some of the bets made at Philadelphia’s Rivers Casino were in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to the indictment.
Blakeney, a 6-4 shooting guard from LSU, played two seasons in the NBA after signing with the Bulls as a free agent in 2017. He averaged 7.5 points and 1.8 rebounds in 76 career games.
Prosecutors said the operation ultimately involved 39 players from more than 17 Division I teams from 2022 to 2025, with bettors betting millions of dollars on at least 29 different games.
Kennesaw State guard Simeon Cottle, another player named in the indictment, played Wednesday night and scored 21 points in the Owls’ 89-86 win over FIU.
NCAA President Charlie Baker said in a statement that the NCAA continues to work with law enforcement to protect the integrity of college athletics.
“We have and will continue to aggressively pursue sports betting violations in college athletics with a multi-layered integrity monitoring program covering more than 22,000 contests,” Baker said. “However, it is still necessary for remaining states, regulators, and gaming companies to eliminate threats to integrity, such as college prop bets, to better protect players and leagues from integrity risks and predatory bettors.”
Of the 20 people named in the indictment, 15 were college or former college basketball players.
An indictment unsealed Thursday reveals a scheme similar to one announced in October, in which Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was one of 30 people indicted in a wide-ranging gambling investigation that allegedly involved members of a New York organized crime family.
One of the gamblers indicted Thursday was high-stakes sports bettor Shane Hennen, who had already been indicted along with Rozier and accused of involvement in the scandal.
Contributor: Scooby Axon
