NBA coach and former Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups has been arrested over claims he was involved in an illegal poker scheme that had ties to the Mafia.
The 49-year-old Portland Trail Blazers head coach was taken into custody in Portland, OR, on Thursday morning, just hours after his team suffered a 118-114 loss against the Minnesota Timberwolves in its NBA season opener.
Billups, who was hired as the head coach of the Trail Blazers in 2021, having spent the previous year serving as the assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers, is one of several NBA icons to have been arrested and charged as part of a sweeping federal investigation into illegal gambling rings.
Miami Heat player Terry Rozier was also charged in his alleged role in a separate—but related—case, according to ABC News, while former Cleveland Cavaliers star Damon Jones was charged in the same indictment as Billups.
The outlet reports that the poker games, which were uncovered as part of an investigation referred to as “Operation Royal Flush,” were organized to include high-profile basketball players to lend them a more authentic feel—but that they were rigged to favor those who were in charge of them.
According to the indictment, 31 defendants are accused of working to influence these poker games using advanced tech, including rigged shuffling machines, poker chip trays that featured hidden cameras for reading cards, an X-ray table that was used to read face-down cards, and even special contact lenses designed to read marked cards.
Officials allege that these games—which are said to have started in 2019 and were run in numerous locations, including the Hamptons, Las Vegas, New York City, and Miami—have thus far defrauded participants of around $7 million, although the exact total is not yet known.
“The fraud is mindboggling,” FBI Director Kash Patel said while announcing the charges at a press conference in New York on Thursday. “We’re talking about tens of millions of dollars in theft, in fraud, in robbery.”
Among those indicted are 13 known Mafia members and contacts from within the Bonano, Gambino and Genovese crime families.
Meanwhile, the second case, referred to as “Operation Nothing But Bet,” accuses six defendants of taking part in an illegal sports betting scheme, which was described by U.S. Attorney General Joseph Nocella Jr. as “one of the most brazen sports corruption schemes since only sports betting became widely legalized in the United States.”
While Rozier was arrested at a hotel in Orlando, FL, according to ESPN, Billups was taken into custody in Oregon, where he is due to be arraigned on Thursday afternoon.
Billups has called Portland, OR, home for the past four years, having signed a multi-year contract with the team in 2021—which was then extended in April 2025.
However, it is unclear whether that contract will be impacted by the severe legal action being taken against him, with reports indicating that he has already been suspended by the Trail Blazers while the investigation is carried out.
Despite his career leading him to Portland in recent years, Billups remains rooted to his home state of Colorado, where he began his basketball dominance while playing for the Colorado Buffaloes.
According to records, Billups owns two properties in Colorado, one of which he has owned since 2007, when he purchased a Denver mansion for $1.23 million, although Realtor.com estimates suggest that the property is worth more than $5.8 million today.
Although Billups has bought and sold other dwellings during his ownership, he is understood to still own this property, however records indicate that he transferred the home into an LLC in 2019.
The expansive mansion is spread across more than 15,000 square feet, and offers six bedrooms and 13 bathrooms. It is located in the tony suburb of Greenwood Village, which is located around 25 minutes’ drive south of Denver.
Google Maps images of the home show an enormous dwelling surrounded by trees for added privacy, with a large circular driveway providing the property with a very luxurious feel.
Perhaps unsurprising, given Billups’ long history with the sport, the property also features a half basketball court in the backyard, as well as a swimming pool and what appears to be a detached guest house.
Although Billups bought the property in 2007, records indicate that the mansion itself was not completed until 2012, suggesting that he either purchased it as a spec home or had it custom-built.
That also appears to be the plan with another plot of land that the NBA legend owns in Colorado City, CO, a small town that sits beneath Greenhorn Mountain and is a popular area among skiers who flock to the area during the winter months.
The plot of land it currently sits on is barren; however, it is located in an area where multiple vacant parcels appear to have been earmarked for development.
“Colorado City is visited yearly by people from all over, for not only the views of the mountains, but for the many recreational activities found here; such as, golfing, hiking, fishing, camping, horseback riding and bird watching,” the local website notes.
Before work on the Greenwood Village property was completed, Billups also owned another Colorado home, this one in the nearby suburb of Englewood.
In 2009, Billups paid $3 million for that six-bedroom, nine-bathroom abode, which spread across just under 10,000 square feet of living space.
He then offloaded the home at a significant loss five years later, selling the property for just over $2.7 million in 2016, despite initially listing it for the much higher price of $3 million in 2014.
Interestingly, the indictment against Billups—who is married and has three daughters—states that he is a resident of Oregon, although it is unclear whether he has invested in property in the area, or whether he is renting.
Given his recent contract extension negotiation, Billups may well have been looking to put down more permanent roots in the area before his recent suspension.
