Some days on the sports calendar merit circling. They come once a year: Super Bowl Sunday; the opening Thursday of March Madness. Take your pick. But did you know Monday is such a day on the sports calendar?
That’s right. Oct. 27, 2025, marks a

After an up and down first two games, Dallas Mavericks rookie sensation Cooper Flagg enjoyed his best overall performance yet on Sunday. Flagg’s best outing led to the rookie experiencing his first taste of an NBA win.
Helping the Mavericks beat the Toronto Raptors, 139-129, Flagg scored 22 points in 29 minutes, his single-game high to this point. Connecting on 8-of-14 shots, Flagg was also the most efficient he’s been at 57.1% from the field.
To top it all off, Flagg, starting his NBA career at just 18, added four rebounds, four assists and a block as well.
Knowing the pressure and hype the 2025 No. 1 overall pick is dealing with, one of Flagg’s veteran teammates couldn’t help but shower the rookie with a big compliment after the game.

DALLAS — Rookie Cooper Flagg caught the look-ahead pass as he crossed the halfcourt line, took one dribble and a couple more long strides and launched for a spectacular, and-1 slam dunk.
The finish over Toronto’s Sandro Mamukelashvili elicited a roar from the crowd at the American Airlines Center, a far cry from the scattered boos during the Dallas Mavericks’ 0-2 start. It was the highlight of an excellent all-around performance in the first NBA victory for Flagg, the No. 1 overall pick who finished with 22 points, four rebounds and four assists.

Giannis Antetokounmpo doesn’t go down easily. We’re all aware of that. But in Milwaukee’s loss to Cleveland, the two-time MVP spent more time on the hardwood than he’d like. For a player who’s built his career on stubborn force, the whistles, or lack thereof, became the real storyline. And when that kind of tension builds around a superstar, it usually means that the team’s patience with officiating is running out.
“Yeah, it’s amazing,” Rivers said post-game. “We knew this was going to be a hard game for him — physical game for him — because he’s going to have to be the majority of our ball. That’s taxing. And yet, he still was willing to go in the paint, get fouled… that’s who he is.”
The Bucks fell 118–113 to the Cavaliers, but the game was less about the score and more about survival. Cleveland, one of the league’s biggest and most physical teams, turned every Giannis drive. Still, Antetokounmpo didn’t flinch. He absorbed hits, scored 40 points, and had 14 rebounds, and even found Turner with a dime through contact that Rivers later called “amazing.”
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“He gets hit, grabbed, held,” Rivers continued. “It’s like Shaq — he doesn’t react to the hits, so there’s no call to it, you know, where if it’s a guard, a guard’s going to flail and get that call. So, it’s just not who he is. So, he’ll never really get it, you know, but still, to be able to make accurate passes through that contact. Um, just tells you how tough he is. ”
The conversation around Antetokounmpo’s physicality isn’t new, but Rivers gave it more urgency. When asked about Hunter’s two-handed foul on a Giannis gather, the Bucks coach didn’t hold back on his words.
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“You should write that,” he told reporters. “It’s a dangerous play… I always worry about the shoulder. They wrap you up, you’re pulling up, and now you tear a shoulder, and there’s no flagrant to that.” It wasn’t a casual plea.
Rivers, who’s coached the likes of Paul Pierce and Chris Paul, knows superstar treatment, and he knows Giannis isn’t getting it. In 2025, with more pace and analytics, the league still doesn’t quite know how to officiate a player who breaks physics on every drive.
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Antetokounmpo, for his part, wasn’t rattled. When asked about facing Cleveland, he offered the calm of someone who’s seen every possible defense known to man.
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“I’ve seen it all,” Giannis said. “Two bigs guarding me, guys picking me full court, double teams in the post, three or four guys in the paint. I’m pretty much prepared for everything. I just let my instincts take over.”
How Giannis Antetokounmpo continues to stay unbothered against all odds
He continued, his tone grounded, almost analytical. “When I step on the court, I try to read the plays. If my teammate is open, I’m going to pass him the ball and I hope he makes the shot because that’s the right I play… I’ve worked so much in my life and I’ve seen everything all kind of defense. Uh, especially when you play FIBA, FIBA basketball, their defense are tougher than NBA basketball. Not in the playoffs. I’m talking about regular season.”
Giannis, now 30, is outsmarting teams. His timing and patience have turned him into something beyond the “Greek Freak” label. His start to the 2025–26 season proves it with 36 points, 16 rebounds, and 7 assists per game while shooting over 68% from the field. Only Shaquille O’Neal in 1993–94 shot better through three games with that volume.
That efficiency doesn’t come from strength alone. It comes from control of the pace, space, and of himself. As Rivers hinted, Giannis’s biggest challenge isn’t the defense, but the officiating gap that comes with being too strong for his own good.
And yet, his durability defies logic. Through endless collisions, there are no frustration tantrums. “He doesn’t react,” Rivers said. “That’s who he is.” The Bucks’ season hinges on that same unshakable behavior.
With key guards sidelined, including Kevin Porter Jr., Cole Anthony, and Kyle Kuzma, Milwaukee’s offense runs entirely through Giannis. He’s both a point guard and a power forward.
Sunday’s game emphasized that reality. Even as the Cavs built an 18-point lead, Giannis dragged Milwaukee back into contention, tying it late in the third before fatigue finally caught up.
The question now, though, is not whether he can keep doing it, because history says he can. The question is whether the league can keep letting him take this kind of pounding.

LOS ANGELES – Luka Doncic scored 49 points and became the fourth player in NBA history to begin a season with back-to-back 40-point performances, leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a 128-110 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night.
Doncic followed his 43-point game in an opening-night loss to Golden State with his highest-scoring effort yet in a Lakers jersey, going 14 for 23 with five 3-pointers while adding 11 rebounds and eight assists.
The Slovenian superstar also made 16 of his 19 free throws, yet he missed his final two field goal attempts and a late free throw to fall just short of his eighth career 50-point game.
Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain and Anthony Davis have also started NBA seasons with a pair of 40-point games. Doncic was traded to LA for Davis last winter.
Anthony Edwards scored 31 points and Julius Randle had 26 for Minnesota, which couldn’t slow the Lakers’ offense in a rematch of last season’s first-round playoff series won in five games by the Wolves.
Austin Reaves added 25 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds, while Rui Hachimura scored 23 and Deandre Ayton had 15 for the Lakers.
LeBron James watched from the Lakers’ bench while wearing the Arizona Wildcats jersey of his younger son, Bryce. The top scorer in NBA history is out until at least mid-November with sciatica.
Doncic mildly injured his groin in the Lakers’ opener, and he hurt his left hand in the opening moments against Minnesota, grabbing at it repeatedly while bent over in pain.
He still scored 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting with four 3-pointers in the first quarter, matching Kobe Bryant and Kyle Kuzma for the Lakers’ most prolific opening quarter in the past 30 years.
Doncic had 32 points by halftime, and he added seven quick points early in the fourth quarter as the Lakers pulled away by 20.
Bronny James made his season debut for the Lakers, playing the final 3:14.
Up next
Timberwolves: Host Indiana on Sunday night.
Lakers: At Sacramento on Sunday night.
___

NEW YORK – This is the Knicks’ series now.
Midway through the third quarter of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals back in May, the defending champion Boston Celtics had a 20-point lead over the New York Knicks, having won eight of the last nine head-to-head meetings. But then came a miraculous Knicks comeback, which was followed by another two nights later in Game 2. Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles in Game 4 and the Knicks won the series in six. Boston broke up its championship roster over the summer and here we are.
Suddenly, the Knicks are one of the favorites and the Celtics are on a lower tier in the Eastern Conference. Things went according to (the new) script on Friday, when New York cruised to a 105-95 victory on in the second game of the season for both teams.
It’s kind of amazing how this rivalry turned on a dime.
Here are some notes, quotes, numbers and film as the Knicks improved to 2-0 and the Celtics fell to 0-2 on the season:
1. Knicks win the possession game
Prior to the game, both teams’ coaches spoke to the importance of getting more shots than your opponent, primarily with the pursuit of offensive rebounds.
“[Teams] understand that it’s about the possession game,” said Knicks coach Mike Brown. “Because everybody is so talented offensively. You just got to try to find ways to generate more possessions.”
“How can we find different ways to win the shot margin?” asked Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla. “Get more possessions, get more shots.”
And with both teams weathering below-average shooting nights, the Knicks were the team dominating the glass, despite the absence of Mitchell Robinson, their best offensive rebounder.
New York grabbed 21 offensive rebounds, the most for any team in a game this season. In total, the Knicks grabbed 60.4% of available rebounds, what would have been their fourth-best mark in 100 total games (regular season + playoffs) last season. In a 10-point game, second chance points were 21-7 in favor of the Knicks, who have now had eight more shooting opportunities than their opponent in each of their first two games.
The Celtics still have some talent on their roster, but almost all of that talent is on the perimeter, and interior play may continue to be an issue throughout the season. There was also a huge discrepancy (22-10) at the free throw line on Friday.
2. Hart begins potential Sixth Man of the Year campaign
With the 7-foot Robinson out, the Knicks’ best offensive rebounder is 6-foot-sd5 Josh Hart, who made his season debut on Friday.
While New York made a change to its starting lineup, it wasn’t Hart who replaced Ariel Hukporti and moved Karl-Anthony Towns to center. It was Miles McBride, with Hart coming off the bench in a regular-season game for the first time since January 2024.
With the assumption that Robinson (who’s missed both games) will be a regular starter when healthy, Hart has been a fashionable pick to win the Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year award, even though that’s typically reserved for scorers, like new teammate Jordan Clarkson. Hart has averaged only 11.3 points per game during his 2 1/2 seasons with the Knicks.
Hart scored just two points on 1-for-8 shooting off the bench on Friday, and the Knicks were outscored by two points in his 19 minutes. But he grabbed 14 rebounds, with six of them coming on the offensive glass. When the Knicks weren’t shooting well, Hart kept possessions alive with his typical, relentless pursuit of the ball.
“A monster, monster, monster,” Brown said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen this before, 14 rebounds in 19 minutes. Just a phenomenal, phenomenal game, doing the dirty stuff.”
At the end of the first half, he grabbed an offensive board and found OG Anunoby for a wide-open 3-pointer to cap off the Knicks’ 42-14 second quarter.
Midway through the fourth, when the Knicks’ 24-point lead had been cut to 10, Hart checked in after a timeout. And on the very next possession, he grabbed two offensive boards, with the second leading to a Brunson layup that put the Knicks back up 12.
Later in the fourth, Hart airballed a wide-open corner 3-pointer and then appeared to reinjure his surgically-repaired right hand when he tried to block a shot on the ensuing transition sequence.
Opponents will give him open shots all season long, and there will be big possessions when the ball is in his hands with the shot clock winding down.
There will also be big possessions when he gives the Knicks multiple chances to score. If it comes down to the possession game, Hart is an asset.
3. Karl-Anthony Towns: Domantas Sabonis with 3-point range?
One of the changes Brown is bringing to the Knicks’ offense is Karl-Anthony Towns handling the ball more in the high post. We saw some of that on Friday, with Towns kinda, sorta in the role of Domantas Sabonis, the hub of Brown’s offense in Sacramento.
Towns had just three assists, but one (on the first possession of the second quarter) was a nice dime to a cutting OG Anunoby, who didn’t know the ball was coming until it was in his chest. On the next possession, we how Towns has a hub can get side-to-side movement. Tyler Kolek came from the right side off the floor, took a handoff, drew a weak-side defender, and found Anunoby for an open 3 in the left corner.
Earlier in the game, a slick pass from Towns to Anunoby resulted in an open 3 for Towns himself:
It’s early, but we can already see how the Knicks’ offense has more variety, which should make it much tougher to guard in the long run.
“He’s a threat from anywhere on the court,” Brunson said of Towns. “When you’re able to pop with someone with so much gravity, you’re playing off of it. He can read and react, if the defense overplays or not, he’s able to make plays like that.”
4. Hauser gets good looks in Spain
Overall, the Celtics scored just 95 points on 94 possessions, what would have been their sixth-worst offensive performance last season.
But one thing that worked multiple times was “Spain” or “stack” pick-and-roll, a standard high pick-and-roll action with an extra back-screen on the the defender of the initial screener. The Celtics ran the action early and often on Friday, and it resulted in some of their best offensive possessions of the day.
The Celtics ran it on their first possession of the night, though they disguised it a bit, first running something for Jaylen Brown on the side of the floor. The ball eventually got back to Payton Pritchard at the top, where Neemias Queta set a ball-screen. Sam Hauser then came up from the baseline to set a back-screen on Towns.
Towns was able to recover to Queta’s roll, but two Knicks went to the ball, leaving Hauser open beyond the arc:
The Celtics ran it again on the next possession and, this time, Queta was open under the basket.
When the game started to get away from them early in the second quarter, the Celtics were able to regain the lead briefly by running Spain two more times. The first time, Hauser popped open for another 3 near the top of the arc. Then, Anfernee Simons was able to get downhill, collapse the defense, and find Derrick White wide open in the left corner.
Spain is a pretty common action around the league these days, but it can still be difficult to defend.

LOS ANGELES — Lakers coach JJ Redick, emulating Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd, knew that his team’s best defense was going to stem from “good offense” against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
And Redick got more than just “good offense” from his team on Friday night – he got a great offense led by a historic performance from Luka Doncic in the Lakers’ first win of the season.
Doncic scored 49 points in the Lakers’ 128-110 victory over the Timberwolves, becoming the first player in franchise history and the fourth in NBA history to open a season with back-to-back 40-point games after scoring 43 in Tuesday’s season-opening loss to the Golden State Warriors.
He shot 14 for 23 from the field, including 5 for 12 from 3-point range, and 16 for 19 on free throws, to go along with 11 rebounds and eight assists.
Doncic was serenaded by “M-V-P” chants throughout the entire game after scoring 23 points in the opening quarter – tying late franchise legend Kobe Bryant and Kyle Kuzma for the most points in a first quarter in Lakers history since the 1996-97 season.
The 26-year-old Slovenian star joined Anthony Davis (2016-17), Michael Jordan (1986-87) and Wilt Chamberlain (1961-62 and 1962-63) as the only players in league history to score at least 40 points in consecutive games to open a season.
Doncic’s combined 92 points in the season’s first two games are a franchise record, besting the 81 points late franchise icon Jerry West scored in the first two games of the 1969-70 season, and the fourth-most in league history behind Chamberlain (106 – 1962-63; 105 – 1961-62) and Davis (95 – 2016-17).
Doncic’s scoring total on Friday was the most since the Lakers acquired him from the Mavericks in early February.
But unlike Tuesday, when Doncic and Austin Reaves carried the offense, the Lakers’ offense hummed in a way that they showed flashes of during the preseason but never sustained for prolonged stretches.
Reaves not only added 25 points (9-for-15 shooting), 11 assists and seven rebounds, but Rui Hachimura bounced back from a quiet offensive performance on Tuesday.
Hachimura finished with 23 points on 10-of-13 shooting, throwing down multiple alley-oops during a third quarter the Laker won 40-31, turning around their woes coming out of halftime.
Deandre Ayton scored 15 points (7-of-11 shooting) and grabbed eight rebounds for a Lakers team that shot 59.2% from the field (45 for 76) and 41.4% from behind the arc (12 for 29).
Anthony Edwards scored 31 points and Julius Randle had 26 for Minnesota in a rematch of last season’s first-round playoff series won in five games by the Wolves.
More to come on this story.

Luka Doncic anotó 49 puntos y se convirtió en el cuarto jugador en la historia de la NBA en comenzar una temporada con actuaciones consecutivas de 40 puntos, liderando a los Lakers de Los Ángeles a una victoria de 128-110 sobre los Timberwolves de Minnesota el viernes por la noche.
Doncic siguió su juego de 43 puntos en la derrota de la noche inaugural contra Golden State con su esfuerzo de mayor puntuación hasta ahora con la camiseta de los Lakers, acertando 14 de 23 con cinco triples, además de sumar 11 rebotes y ocho asistencias.
La superestrella eslovena también encestó 16 de sus 19 tiros libres, aunque falló sus dos últimos intentos de campo y un tiro libre tardío, quedándose a las puertas de su octavo juego de 50 unidades en su carrera.
Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain y Anthony Davis también han comenzado temporadas de la NBA con un par de juegos de 40 puntos. Doncic fue traspasado a Los Ángeles por Davis el invierno pasado.
Anthony Edwards anotó 31 puntos y Julius Randle tuvo 26 para Minnesota, que no pudo frenar la ofensiva de los Lakers en una revancha de la serie de primera ronda de los playoffs de la temporada pasada, ganada en cinco juegos por los Wolves.
Austin Reaves añadió 25 unidades, 11 asistencias y siete rebotes, mientras que Rui Hachimura anotó 23 y Deandre Ayton tuvo 15 para los Lakers.
LeBron James observó desde la banca de los Lakers mientras vestía la camiseta de los Arizona Wildcats de su hijo menor, Bryce. El máximo anotador en la historia de la NBA estará fuera hasta al menos mediados de noviembre debido a una ciática.
Doncic se lesionó levemente la ingle en el partido inaugural de los Lakers, y se lastimó la mano izquierda en los primeros momentos contra Minnesota, agarrándola repetidamente mientras se doblaba de dolor.
Aun así, anotó 23 puntos con ocho de 12 tiros y cuatro triples en el primer cuarto, igualando a Kobe Bryant y Kyle Kuzma en el cuarto de apertura más prolífico de los Lakers en los últimos 30 años.
Doncic tenía 32 puntos al descanso, y añadió siete unidades rápidas al inicio del cuarto período mientras los Lakers se alejaban por 20.
Bronny James hizo su debut de temporada para los Lakers, jugando los últimos 3:14.
___

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Luka Doncic has begun his first full season with the Lakers on a serious heater.
The Slovenian superstar is off to one of the greatest starts to a season in NBA history, following up his 43-point effort on opening night against Golden State with a 49-point spree in Los Angeles’ victory over Minnesota on Friday night.
After a summer spent getting into top shape, excelling at EuroBasket and settling into Los Angeles, Doncic has become the fourth player in NBA history to begin a season with back-to-back 40-point performances — and he barely missed a triple-double twice, too.
His game has been superb, even if he’s still working out some early-season problems with his celebrations.
After Doncic leaned in, stepped back and buried a beautiful 26-footer over Jaden McDaniels to put the Lakers up by 19 in the fourth quarter, he did a shoulder shimmy that embarrassed him, but delighted a building full of fans who love to see him shine.
“It’s honestly because I don’t know what to do at those moments,” Doncic said with a grin. “I just do some stupid thing, and I don’t know what to do, and that just came out. It’s got to be better. I’ve got to work on it.”
Almost everything else Doncic does for the Lakers has been phenomenal out of the gate.
His 92 points are the most to start a season in the history of a team that has employed many of the greatest players ever to pick up a basketball over the past eight decades. It’s also the fourth-most points scored through two games by any player in NBA history.
Only three players had ever started a season with back-to-back 40-point efforts: Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan and Anthony Davis, who did it in New Orleans in 2016.
Doncic even has 23 rebounds and 17 assists in two games.
“It’s felt great,” Doncic said. “I wish we would have won the first game, but obviously it’s a good comeback. I think Minnesota is a great team. We had to do a lot to win today, but myself, I feel great.”
With LeBron James sidelined by sciatica for at least the first few weeks, Doncic knew a scoring burden would be on his shoulders. That’s nothing new for Doncic, who carried less-talented Dallas teams for long stretches over the past half-decade — but he’s determined to combine his scoring with a strong all-around floor game reflecting the next step in his evolution as a player.
Doncic’s teammates were just as wowed as Lakers fans by this 49-point effort — although they weren’t impressed by his dunk in the fourth quarter, with Austin Reaves grinningly saying that Doncic “ain’t very explosive.”
“He’s obviously one of the best players in the league,” Reaves said. “He’s been that since he got in the league, so the stuff he does isn’t a surprise to anybody. It’s not like it’s crazy, because you look at the numbers he’s putting up, but he does it within a way that everybody is involved. He’s such a good passer. And that’s enough compliments for him.”
The Lakers were aware Doncic was on the brink of his eighth career 50-point game in the final minutes, and coach JJ Redick kept him in the blowout a bit longer than usual. Unfortunately, Doncic missed his final two shots — including a layup — and then bricked a free throw that would have put him over the top.
Redick finally exercised prudence and pulled his franchise player.
“I’m trying to get the guy 50, and I’d already given him three chances,” Redick said with mock exasperation. “I gave him a fourth chance, he gets fouled, and he blows that, too. Nah, he was awesome.”
Doncic said he felt no special motivation to beat the Timberwolves, who blasted the Lakers out of the playoffs in the first round last spring to end Doncic’s long season of upheaval.
“Last year was really tough for me,” Doncic said. “I just want to forget about last season and just try to move on. I didn’t really think about that, because it’s just the second game.”
___

“Just a complete game for him.”
J.J. Redick may have undersold what he just saw. The Lakers and their coach needed a game like this from Luka Doncic, where he dropped an efficient 49 points and came up two assists short of a triple-double.
With that, the Lakers got a comfortable home win over the Timberwolves, 128-110. Doncic saves his best games for the Timberwolves, and he did his best work against their best defenders — Doncic shot 10-of-12 and had 24 of his points when guarded by either Jaden McDaniels or Rudy Gobert.
Doncic got help from Austin Reaves, who scored 25 and dished out 11 assists, and from Rui Hachimura, who added 23 points on 10-of-13 shooting. Anthony Edwards led Minnesota with 31 points, while Julius Randle added 26 points and nine rebounds.

Before Tiago Splitter stepped onto the court for the first time as an NBA head coach, a reporter attempted to get him to share his perspective on the gambling scandal that had unexpectedly thrust him into this interim role with the Trail Blazers.
Splitter had, after all, played eight years in the NBA. He won a championship with San Antonio in 2012. Though only 40, in league circles he qualifies as something of an old head, especially among the young Blazers.
What did he believe this week’s revelations and federal indictments would mean for the league?
He squinted as he considered his answer.
“I would like,” the Brazilian said, “not to talk about that. You put me in a tough position.”
Splitter has found himself in a tough position, indeed. If not an impossible one.
How can anyone be expected to navigate such an unprecedented situation?
After Chauncey Billups was indicted Thursday on federal wire fraud and money laundering charges and implicated as a co-conspirator in the league’s betting scandal, Splitter was elevated to the interim position. On Friday night, he became the first member of the Trail Blazers’ organization to publicly address the remarkable developments.
“We all had a great experience with Chauncey and how he coached and we are thinking of him and his family,” Splitter said. “But we’ve got a job to do. We’ve got a job to do and move forward.”
There is almost no historical comparison to the circumstances by which Splitter became the Blazers’ head coach.
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His predecessor was not fired. He did not resign, die or become ill. He was placed in handcuffs and arraigned in federal court as part of a conspiracy that touches both the NBA and the world of organized crime.
And it was Splitter, whose only previous head coaching experience came last year with Paris Basketball in the French league, who the franchise tasked with helping this promising but young roster navigate the shock of that.
If a small sample size is to be believed, Splitter’s ascent may prove to be the silver lining of this whole sordid situation.
The Blazers rocked the Golden State Warriors on Friday night in Splitter’s debut, winning 139-119 and overcoming a 35-point night from Stephen Curry. Yes, the Warriors are old and were playing on the second night of a back-to-back.
But Friday felt like a culture win for the Blazers. A statement of intent. And that matters going forward.
The hallmarks of the Billups’ blueprint were on full display, with the Blazers forcing 25 turnovers (13 of them steals) and nearly doubling up the Warriors in fast break points.
“That’s going to be the identity of this team and I’m not going to change it,” Splitter said. “I’m part of the process of putting this together and we’ve been working for two months or more on our identity and how we’re going to play this season.”
Whether Splitter deserves credit for it carrying over without the architect of that vision will come into sharper focus in the weeks and certainly months ahead as this slowly transitions from being a Billups-led team to one with Splitter at the helm.
But Splitter passed his first test in spectacular fashion.
He was composed and direct in his public comments. It was far from ideal that the interim coach would be the first person from the organization to address the situation while the team’s executives were muzzled due to the legal implications of the situation.
The team blocked out the noise of being at the nexus of the biggest story in basketball, and one of the biggest news events in the country, to play a complete and dazzling game, with eight players scoring in double figures.
Splitter cut an impressive figure on the sideline and was poised despite being thrown into an unfamiliar situation.
“He definitely has maturity to him,” Blazers guard Jrue Holiday said, “and the demeanor to balance us out. I think the way that he carries himself is very stoic. So coming in here, we definitely have confidence when he talks and everybody listens.”
Players seem to have quickly embraced Splitter.
They doused him with cold water after his first win and players joked about playing hard for Splitter because he promised them a day off from practice if they blew out the Warriors.
“He understands the players,” Deni Avdija said. “He understands basketball at the highest levels.”
Splitter was a coveted candidate for assistant coaching jobs last summer before landing in Portland. But he was on nobody’s radar to become a head coach this season.
Extraordinary circumstances have led him to an incredible opportunity.
Could he turn this unexpected interim tag into the full-time gig?
That is several steps down the road. But Friday night’s win over the Warriors in the season’s second game was an impressive validation of the system Billups and the Trail Blazers spent the summer implementing and of Splitter’s ability to see it through.
Adversity has a way of bonding teams and these Blazers are now working through a singular situation in NBA history, with Splitter suddenly their leader.
Golden State had defeated the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets to open the season, and the Blazers ran the Warriors off the court.
More games like that, and Portland will be in the thick of the postseason hunt.
Talk about finding yourself in an unexpected position.

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Minnesota knew its ceiling would be determined by its defense at the outset of training camp last month.
In order to be a championship team – the Wolves’ stated goal after finishing as the Western Conference runnerup in each of the last two seasons – Minnesota had to be elite at producing stops. The Wolves had to be within the top two or three teams in the NBA.
It felt doable. The Wolves were that the league’s best defensive team during the 2023-24 season.
And this time around, Minnesota featured a near repeat roster flush with familiar faces who would allow the team to hit the ground running.
“For me, the most important thing for our group is to really build the right habits from Day 1 and decide what our pillars are going to be. When it comes to defense, really decide,” Rudy Gobert said back on the team’s media day. “Make sure (that) no matter what, no matter who is on the floor, we stay dedicated to those things. And if we do that, and we do it together, I think we’re going to be a top defense this year.”
Two games into the season, the Timberwolves sport the NBA’s fourth-worst defense after falling 128-110 to the Lakers on Friday in Los Angeles.
Minnesota radio voice Alan Horton posted on X.Com that the Wolves’ defensive rating of 139.6 on Friday marked the team’s second-worst in the last 16 seasons.
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch aptly summed it up as “one of the worst defensive performances we’ve had in a long time.”
Luka Doncic finished with 49 points. He and Austin Reaves generated one easy look for another for themselves and their teammates as the Wolves defenders ushered the playmakers to their preferred spots on the floor.
In the third frame Friday, Minnesota shot 59% from the field and went 9 for 10 from the charity stripe. It still lost the quarter by nine points, 40-31.
Minnesota made Reaves’ life hell in last year’s playoffs. He dissected Minnesota’s once-sturdy defense to the tune of 25 points and 11 assists on Friday.
Ball contain, rotations, closeouts – they’re all bad at the moment for Minnesota. Finch told reporters his team never discussed going “under” ball screens against Doncic, yet players did that multiple times early in the game to free up the superstar for wide-open triples.
The Timberwolves have played eight quarters of basketball this season. They’ve allowed more than 130 points per 100 possessions – a sky-high defensive rating – in five of them.
Their “best” defensive quarter to date came in the final frame Friday in Portland, in which the Wolves held the Blazers to 4 for 19 shooting to rally to victory. But it should be noted Portland went 1 for 10 from deep in that fourth quarter, and all of those shots were “wide open,” per NBA.Com tracking data.
There were no such bailouts in Friday’s affair. The Lakers executed at a high level, punishing every mental lapse the Wolves made.
The Wolves knew they likely couldn’t finish sixth in defensive rating – like they did a year ago – and contend for a championship this season.
At this rate, they’d be fortunate to finish 20th.
“The defense is certainly not where it needs to be. Just nothing, not dictating at the point of attack, no aggressiveness to it at all. The fly around mentality behind it is just not quite there,” Finch told reporters. ““We have to get back to everybody buying into guarding. … We’ve just got to be better at the point of attack. That’s where it all starts.”
In fairness, it has only been two games. There are 80 to play in the regular season. Perhaps Sunday’s home opener against Indiana in front of a raucous Target Center crowd will revive Minnesota’s defensive intensity and the Wolves won’t relinquish it again from there.
The Wolves sure better hope so. Because it’s rare for a team to suddenly get great on the defensive end after showing signs of the opposite early in the campaign.
A team with a roster that brought back so many familiar faces figured to quickly establish an identity and chart a viable path toward a championship.
The best teams are at least a version of who they want to be by the time camp breaks.
“Everything that you know you are in January, you would have had to have already been coming into training camp or in training camp,” Wolves guard Mike Conley said early in camp. “We expect to be a tough-minded defensive team.”
It was a nice thought. But through two games, the Wolves have no identity. They’ve set no tone. The Lakers – who don’t sport a physical roster – were the clear aggressors Friday in Los Angeles.
Their first true punch landed Friday in the latter stages of the first quarter put Minnesota’s defense on its heels, and the Wolves spent the rest of the evening in the corner, anxiously awaiting the bell.
There was no fight on that end of the floor. And, thus, no chance altogether.
Whether Minnesota still has the players willing and able to flip the early script is to be determined.
Because this much is already known – if the Wolves can’t get stops, they cannot contend for anything of consequence.
Originally Published: October 25, 2025 at 2:18 AM CDT

We’ve now seen all 30 NBA teams play at least one game. The Thunder and Warriors have gone twice. Does that mean we can say anything meaningful about the 2025-26 season? Maybe. Maybe not. Last year, the Hornets beat the Rockets on the road. Charlotte wasn’t the surprise No. 2 seed among those teams. Both of the Tuesday matchups were won by teams that would eventually lose to those same opponents in the playoffs — the Lakers to the Timberwolves and the Celtics to the Knicks. Again, not exactly predictive. But there were at least a few games that gave us meaningful insight.
The Cleveland Cavaliers dropped 136 points in a 30-point decimation of the Toronto Raptors, for instance. They had the best offense in the league across a 64-win season while the Raptors tanked. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander beat Nikola Jokić on the road and then took his MVP award. Opening night is the first real opportunity for players and teams to show the world what they spent the summer working toward. Sometimes it takes a while, as it did for the Rockets. Sometimes it’s immediate, as it was for the Cavaliers.
We have a whole season to offer measured takes on reliable samples. Opening night is for overreactions. So let’s go through each of these games in search of one extreme takeaway. Will any of these pan out? Well, if last year is any indication, some of them will, and others will look ridiculous. This is the NBA. It’s an ever-changing league, and it’s better to be too early on these changes than too late.
NBA opening night overreactions
Nuggets-Warriors: Nikola Jokić will have his first All-Star teammate
It was a Twilight Zone sort of night for the Nuggets. They made it to overtime despite losing Jokić’s minutes. Aaron Gordon chipped in 50 points, but Denver lost because Jokić had a miserable shooting night. Still … Aaron Gordon scored 50 points, and he did so on a career-best 10 3-pointers. He was a 29% 3-point shooter as recently as two years ago, but after making 43.6% of his triples last season, it’s fair to be optimistic that Thursday’s shooting is at least somewhat sustainable.
Meanwhile, Jamal Murray scored 25 points on 11-of-20 shooting. That might not sound especially notable, except that for his career, Murray has averaged only 10.5 points in season openers. He’s a notoriously slow starter, especially lately because of injuries. But if Murray is healthy and Gordon is making 3s, the Nuggets won’t need Jokić to be Superman every night. If Thursday was any indication, they’ll be able to carry enough of the load to not only keep him fresher throughout the season, but also give him the first All-Star teammate(s) of his career.
Pacers-Thunder: Bennedict Mathurin is the Most Improved Player favorite
Bennedict Mathurin was drafted into pretty unusual circumstances. He immediately joined a team that had just acquired its franchise player. That franchise player plays a specific sort of basketball, and his team rose to prominence in part by surrounding him with teammates who fit that style. It was an awkward fit. Mathurin needs the ball in his hands to thrive. He’s an athletic, slashing scorer, one that sometimes stood out on the freewheeling Pacers for his shot-selection and ball-dominance.
But with Tyrese Haliburton injured, the Pacers don’t have any choice but to put the ball in Mathurin’s hands, and in his first game as one of Indiana’s primary scorers, he soared, scoring 36 points against the best defense in the league. Last season, the only two players to do that against the Thunder were Fred VanVleet and Stephen Curry, both of whom did so on at least five made 3-pointers. Mathurin did it by barreling towards the basket, drawing 17 free-throw attempts in what was almost one of the best season-opening victories in Pacers history. They may have lost the game, but if this is Mathurin taking that crucial next step, they’ll wind up winning the war. He flashed star upside on Thursday, and he’ll have 81 more chances to show voters he deserves a trophy for it.
Mavericks-Spurs: Victor Wembanyama is the best player in the world
Look past the numbers for a moment. I know that’s going to be difficult on a night in which Wembanyama scored 40 points, pulled in 15 rebounds, blocked three shots and made over 70% of his shots, but his stat lines are always gaudy.
What we saw on Wednesday was different.
This was no longer a baby bird spreading its wings. This was a dragon laying waste to any who would dare oppose him. The entire theory of the Dallas Mavericks was to build a team so gigantic that nobody could score against it. Wembanyama made it look easy. How many 7-5 centers have you ever seen pump fake into a drive that ended in a reverse dunk? How about blocking an opposing center on one end and then crossing him up for a four-point play on the other?
He’s running the floor like a small forward now, but he’s added enough bulk to bully centers. When Anthony Davis is so lost against you that he has no option but to foul, you know you’re doing something right. Maybe Nikola Jokić is still more valuable. Maybe Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hoists the trophy again at the end. But Victor Wembanyama’s season 3 premiere made the impossible look routine. No one else on Earth can do what he does. If he isn’t the best player in the NBA today, he will be in the very near future.
Timberwolves-Trail Blazers: Minnesota is still light on playmaking
Yes, the Timberwolves won, and yes, Anthony Edwards was spectacular with 41 points, but this game was closer than the Timberwolves likely suspected in part because this team remains light on playmaking. They assisted on only half of their 42 field goals and committed 19 turnovers. With Donte DiVincenzo replacing Mike Conley in the starting lineup and Rob Dillingham and Terrence Shannon Jr. expected to take on bigger roles this season, the Timberwolves are seemingly moving away from traditional point guards. Yes, 41 points from Edwards are nice. He’s capable of playing hero. But given the construction of this roster, the Timberwolves need more than one assist out of Edwards if they’re going to get by the many Western Conference teams that are better than the Blazers.
Kings-Suns: Signing Russell Westbrook was a mistake
It’s a bit cliche to blame Russell Westbrook, especially after a single game. The problem here is less what he did on the court, though a 2-of-8 shooting night in 19 minutes was hardly encouraging. The issue here is what he does to Sacramento’s roster. He got on the floor before Keon Ellis, the only reliable defender the Kings have, and that in turn limited Ellis to only 13 minutes. Meanwhile, the Kings closed their loss to the Suns with Dylan Caldwell, a two-way player, at center. Westbrook’s slot on the team probably should have gone to a defensive-minded big man. The roster is enormously unbalanced. They have too many players who need the ball and not enough frontcourt players to do the dirty work. Westbrook’s reputation affords him playing time that this specific roster needs to be spending elsewhere.
Clippers-Jazz: The Clippers are too old
The Clippers built the oldest roster in NBA history this offseason, and they likely felt justified in doing so because of how well their older players fared a year ago. James Harden was an All-Star and Kawhi Leonard looked like his peak self down the stretch, so they added Chris Paul, Bradley Beal and Brook Lopez to their basketball remake of The Expendables. Well, what happened when they tipped off on Wednesday? They were run off the floor by the younger, more athletic Jazz.
The Clippers scored just eight fast break points in defeat, and the starting trio of Leonard, Beal and Harden combined for only 30 points. Aside from Derrick Jones Jr., there isn’t much athleticism to speak of here. The Clippers need to out-execute opponents largely on skill, and if there is any slippage whatsoever from where those players were a year ago, that’s going to be very tough. They came out completely flat on opening night, and if that’s a sign of where they are physically now, things are only going to get harder in the dog days of the schedule.
Bulls-Pistons: Detroit doesn’t have enough shooting
Malik Beasley, as a reserve, was responsible for more than 30% of Detroit’s made 3-pointers last season. To put that number into perspective, Stephen Curry was responsible for around 32% of Golden State’s 3-pointers in 2021, the year he played without Klay Thompson. The Pistons hoped that Duncan Robinson would be enough to replace his shooting, but Robinson hasn’t made 40% of his 3s since 2021 and he missed all five of his attempts on Wednesday. Robinson is virtually unplayable when his shots don’t go in, but the Pistons have no choice.
Considering how much they have invested in Ausar Thompson and Jalen Duren, who are non-shooters, they need Robinson to space the floor properly. They got the worst of both worlds on Wednesday, as Robinson did little for their offense while suffering defensively. Meanwhile, Cade Cunningham spent the game driving into traffic en route to an 8-of-24 shooting performance. The Pistons are at least one shooter short right now, but given how historic Beasley was a year ago, even that might not be enough to lift this offense.
Grizzlies-Pelicans: Ja Morant will return to the All-Star Game
Ja Morant more or less lost the 2023-24 season to injuries and suspension. He was back on the court last season, but injuries continued to weaken him, and so did a revamped offense that all but removed the pick-and-roll. His 11.4 paint points per game and 6.4 free throw attempts per game both represented meaningful dips from his 2022 peak, when he made his first All-Star Game. But with Tuomas Iisalo now locked in as head coach and an offseason of recovery behind him, Morant put up 20 paint points and eight free-throw attempts against the Pelicans on Wednesday, en route to 35 points on the night.
Everything Morant does offensively flows out of his ability to get to the basket and get to the line, and Iisalo has reconfigured the offense to maximize his opportunities to do so. This version of Morant is an All-Star, and if he can play like this when half of his team is injured, he’ll only get stronger as the season progresses.
Bucks-Wizards: Khris Middleton is back!
The Bucks are ineligible for any overreactions by virtue of having played the Wizards. We’re not even going to pretend to take anything away from their opening performance. But a former Buck that was on the other side Wednesday? That’s fair game. Can you guess the last time Khris Middleton scored 23 points in an NBA game? I’m almost certain you can’t, because it wasn’t even last season. No, it was Game 4 of Milwaukee’s five-game loss to Indiana in the 2024 postseason.
Khris Middleton shows love to Bucks fans in return to Milwaukee: ‘I think that’s every player’s dream’
Jack Maloney
A variety of injuries tore Middleton down to the point that he was essentially just salary filler in the Kyle Kuzma trade last February. But Middleton looked healthier than he has in quite some time with his 9-of-14 shooting performance against the Bucks on Wednesday. He can’t get to the rim like he used to, but he looked comfortable finding his patented mid-range looks against the Bucks, and if that persists, he immediately becomes a pretty interesting trade or buyout candidate come midseason.
Hawks-Raptors: Toronto can build a viable offense without shooting
The 2024-25 Toronto Raptors never scored more than 133 points in a game. They scored 138 on opening night this season, and here’s the kicker: They only shot 7-of-25 from 3-point range. This is Toronto in a nutshell. Dating back to the Nick Nurse years, they always lagged behind in shooting and playmaking, but made up for it by getting to the basket and scoring in transition. The Raptors had 34 fastbreak points on Wednesday to go along with 86 points in the paint. This is a weird group of players, and one that will probably need some mixing and matching from a lineup perspective. But they’re big, athletic, and relentless defensively. They’ll generate enough easy offense on that alone to survive, even if the shooting never quite comes around.
76ers-Celtics: Philadelphia belongs to the guards now
Joel Embiid played 20 minutes, scored four points against arguably the NBA’s thinnest front court and ultimately got benched for crunch time. His movement looked completely compromised. It should be panic time in Philadelphia, except VJ Edgecombe and Tyrese Maxey just announced themselves as perhaps the most unguardable backcourt in the NBA.
Joel Embiid looks like a shell of himself during 20 painful minutes in 76ers’ season-opening win vs. Celtics
Brad Botkin
The pair combined to make 12 3-pointers on the way to their 74 points, and that shooting makes their elite speed that much more lethal. Philadelphia’s big man may be slow and relatively unathletic at this stage of his career, but the 76ers can build a new identity around their backcourt’s skill and dynamism. A star was born in Edgecombe on Wednesday, and Maxey reaffirmed that status for himself after an injury-plagued tanking year.
Knicks-Cavaliers: Mike Brown and Leon Rose fixed the bench
If Tom Thibodeau had his way, his teams would rely on only five players. Maybe four. Luol Deng can play two positions at once, right? Mike Brown was hired in part to make the most of a bench built with limited resources, and he did just that in their 119-111 win against Cleveland. The Knicks used 11 players against the Cavaliers on Wednesday, and with Mitchell Robinson and Josh Hart injured, that meant every player with a standard contract except Pacôme Dadiet and Mohamed Diawara saw real action. The result? The Knicks got 35 points from their bench after averaging a league-low (by a country mile) 21.7 a year ago.
Every reserve except Landry Shamet had a positive plus-minus. Ariel Hukporti stood out starting in Robinson’s place early on thanks to his energy and rebounding, but just about everyone did their part for the Knicks in their season-opening victory.
Magic-Heat: Orlando will end its 13-year streak as a bottom-10 offense
Death, taxes and bad Orlando offense. The Magic have ranked in the bottom 10 offensively 13 years in a row. That’s what compelled their offseason blockbuster for Desmond Bane, and against a stout Miami defense, Bane absolutely delivered. His 23 points obviously helped, but really, just having a threatening shooter on the floor changed everything for this offense. After ranking 24th in the NBA with 45.8 paint points per game a season ago, the Magic dropped 56 on a Heat frontline led by star defender Bam Adebayo. If Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero can take the next step with this newfound space, the Magic won’t just avoid the bottom-10, they might even sneak into the top 10.
Hornets-Nets: Charlotte has its centers
The Hornets traded Mark Williams twice and Nick Richards once, and to the naked eye, it looked like they just didn’t seek viable replacements. Well, it turns out, they’ve managed to fill the position for pennies on the dollar. Second-round rookie Ryan Kalkbrenner and former two-way player Moussa Diabaté combined to give Charlotte 23 points, 20 rebounds and three blocks in their 136-117 win over the Nets. Diabaté was a plus-minus darling on the defensive end a year ago, and Kalkbrenner won four consecutive Big East Defensive Player of the Year awards, so while they were pretty unheralded by typical NBA standards, the Hornets were justified in betting on them. That bet paid off on Wednesday. At least for now, they can roll forward with this duo.
Thunder-Rockets: Alperen Sengun is an MVP candidate
It’s been burbling all summer, especially at EuroBasket, where he drew comparisons to Nikola Jokić. Well, Tuesday was proof of concept. Alperen Sengun was for large stretches the best player on a court with Kevin Durant and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, ultimately scoring 39 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists in the Houston loss. He made a career-high five 3-pointers — he’d previously topped out at three, and even that was a rarity. His finishing at the rim was a bit suspect last season, but he made four of his five restricted area shots against the Thunder. He led both teams with seven assists, no small feat considering he’s playing on a roster with very little ball-handling or shooting.
Rockets haunted by glaring lack of point guard competence in season-opening defeat
Brad Botkin
We came into the season not knowing how Houston’s offense would fare without Fred VanVleet. Tuesday gave us our answer: Through Sengun, and it’s going to vault him into some very lofty conversations.
Lakers-Warriors: Not even skinny Luka can fix this roster
Here’s a distressing statistic: 97 of the 109 points scored by the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday were scored or assisted on by Luka Dončić or Austin Reaves. Not great. Neither is a home loss when your best player has a 43-point, 12-rebound, nine-assist stat line. The Lakers shot 8-of-32 from deep, distressing in percentage of course, but also in volume given how much JJ Redick has talked about hoisting 3s.
The Lakers keep making the same mistakes, but now the stakes are higher than ever for Rob Pelinka
Sam Quinn

An impressive overtime victory saw the Golden State Warriors overcome a tough Denver Nuggets roster on Thursday, Oct. 23. Steve Kerr’s team is now 2-0 to start the season.
During his postgame news conference, Stephen Curry detailed how Golden State is building a winning mentality and how that can become the foundation for a successful season.
“I mean, there’s 80 games left, so you kind of understand you don’t get too ahead of yourself,” Curry said. “But building blocks on an understanding of how to win, the selflessness of a team that can have eight or nine guys in a closing lineup, realistically. I was telling somebody I don’t think that closing lineup, Al, Jimmy, Draymond, JK, and myself had got any real rips in training camp.”
Curry continued.
“When you understand who you’re playing against and what it takes to win this particular game, collective IQ and just toughness got us over the hump. So, great start. Haven’t done anything yet. But we’re building a winning mentality.”
The Warriors have constructed a veteran rotation that is full of experience and championship know-how. Mike Dunleavy has also ensured there’s a decent sprinkling of young and emerging talent, too, as the Warriors looked to find the right balance.
Curry And Butler Still Competing At The Line
After the Warriors secured an opening-night win over the Los Angeles Lakers, Jimmy Butler revealed that he and Draymond Green had made a bet. The stipulation is that Butler will end the season with a higher free-throw percentage than Curry. Yet, against the Nuggets, Butler went 7-of-8 at the charity stripe, while Curry was 8-for-8.
“I can neither confirm nor deny anything that’s going on with the free-throw situation this year,” Curry joked after the game.
Regardless of whether Butler or Green wins the bet, the added internal compeition should drive the Warriors to continue being aggressive in drawing shooting fouls. And, throughout the season, that could be a wrinkle that ends up paying dividends.
Warriors Can Be Contenders This Season
Golden State’s winning start to the season will likely be encouraging for the fanbase. The Warriors are viewed as a potential candidate to challenge for the NBA championship this season, assuming their aging roster can remain healthy as we get deeper into the campaign.
We saw those credentials as Kerr’s team found another gear in overtime against the Nuggets. The Warriors have so much experience throughout their roster, so they understand how to navigate difficult situations on the court.
Mike Dunleavy Jr. and Joe Lacob did a great job of pinpointing and acquiring talent this summer. Al Horford already looks like a shrewd addition to the rotation, and Will Richard could be among the steals of the draft.
Golden State has shooting, interior scoring and a reliable pressure-based defense. The foundations for success are in place. If the franchise can begin building championship habits early in the season, they should emerge as one of the better teams in the league before too long, and that should be a scary prospect for other rosters with hopes of competing for a championship this season.

Las autoridades estadounidenses anunciaron el jueves varios arrestos de alto perfil, incluyendo el de un jugador estrella y un entrenador de la Asociación Nacional de Baloncesto (NBA), por presuntas apuestas deportivas ilegales.
Entre los detenidos se encuentran el entrenador de los Portland Trail Blazers, Chauncey Billups, y el jugador de los Miami Heat, Terry Rozier, quienes, según se informa, fueron arrestados tras los partidos de sus equipos el miércoles.
Los arrestos forman parte de una investigación exhaustiva sobre apuestas ilegales que, según el FBI, dio lugar a dos acusaciones formales: una contra jugadores que supuestamente fingen lesiones para influir en las probabilidades de las apuestas, y otra que involucra a una red ilegal de póker vinculada al crimen organizado.
Esto es lo que sabemos sobre los casos.
¿Cuales son las acusaciones?
El director del FBI, Kash Patel, describió a la prensa las acusaciones como “impactantes”.
Se incluyeron acusaciones formales en dos casos importantes relacionados con fraude, según informaron las autoridades.
El primer caso se denomina “Operación Nada Más que Apuestas”, en el que jugadores y asociados presuntamente utilizaron información privilegiada para manipular las apuestas en las principales plataformas de apuestas deportivas.
En algunos casos, los jugadores alteraron su rendimiento o se retiraron de los juegos para asegurarse de que esas apuestas se pagaran, según la comisionada de policía de la ciudad de Nueva York, Jessica Tisch.
Esas apuestas ascendieron a decenas de miles de dólares en ganancias.
El segundo caso es más complejo, según las autoridades, e involucra a cuatro de las cinco principales familias criminales de Nueva York, así como a atletas profesionales.
Los acusados ​​en ese caso presuntamente participaron en un plan para manipular partidas ilegales de póker y robar millones de dólares.
Para ello, utilizaron tecnología “muy sofisticada”, que incluía máquinas barajadoras comerciales, lentes de contacto especiales y gafas para leer las cartas premarcadas, según las autoridades. También utilizaban una mesa de rayos X que podía leer las cartas boca abajo.
Supuestamente, las víctimas fueron engañadas para jugar en estos juegos con exatletas profesionales, quienes actuaban en la estafa como “cartas visibles” [una especie de señuelo que le daba credibilidad a la operación]. Las víctimas desconocían que todos, incluyendo al crupier y a los demás jugadores, participaban en la estafa.
Las autoridades afirmaron que comenzaron a investigar estas partidas de póker en 2019, abarcando varios lugares, como los Hamptons, Las Vegas, Miami y Manhattan.
Los acusados ​​presuntamente blanquearon ganancias mediante transferencias bancarias y criptomonedas.
También se les acusa de haber cometido actos de violencia, incluyendo un robo a punta de pistola y extorsión contra las víctimas.
Ambas estafas ascendieron a decenas de millones de dólares en robos y hurtos a lo largo de varios años y en 11 estados, según las autoridades.
¿Qué jugadores han sido arrestados?
En total, las autoridades afirman que 34 acusados ​​fueron imputados por cargos relacionados con los dos casos de fraude.
Seis fueron acusados ​​en el primer caso, en el que jugadores supuestamente fingieron lesiones para influir en las probabilidades de las apuestas, incluyendo a Rozier, jugador del Miami Heat.
La comisionada de policía de Nueva York, Jessica Tisch, declaró que en marzo de 2023, Rozier, quien entonces jugaba para los Charlotte Hornets, supuestamente informó a personas cercanas a él que planeaba abandonar un partido antes de tiempo debido a una supuesta lesión.
Los miembros del grupo utilizaron esa información para realizar apuestas fraudulentas y obtener grandes ganancias, afirmó.
La comisionada Tisch dijo tras el arresto de Rozier el jueves que su “carrera ya está en la banca, no por lesión, sino por integridad”.
El exjugador de la NBA Damon Jones también fue arrestado. Se dice que estuvo involucrado en dos partidos que presuntamente formaban parte del plan: el enfrentamiento entre Los Angeles Lakers y los Milwaukee Bucks en febrero de 2023 y el de enero de 2024 entre los Lakers y los Oklahoma City Thunder.
Las autoridades identificaron un total de siete partidos de la NBA entre febrero de 2023 y marzo de 2024 que formaron parte del caso:
9 de febrero de 2023 – Los Angeles Lakers vs. Milwaukee Bucks
23 de marzo de 2023 – Charlotte Hornets vs. New Orleans Pelicans
24 de marzo de 2023 – Portland Trail Blazers vs. Chicago Bulls
6 de abril de 2023 – Orlando Magic vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
15 de enero de 2024 – Los Angeles Lakers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
26 de enero de 2024 – Toronto Raptors vs. Los Angeles Clippers
20 de marzo de 2024 – Toronto Raptors vs. Sacramento Kings
El segundo caso, relacionado con partidas ilegales de póker, involucró a un total de 31 acusados, incluyendo al entrenador de los Portland Trail Blazers, Billups, quien ingresó al Salón de la Fama del baloncesto el año pasado.
Las autoridades informaron que tres de los acusados ​​fueron imputados en ambos casos. Trece miembros y asociados de las familias criminales Bonanon, Genovese y Gambino de Nueva York también fueron imputados en el caso de póker ilegal.
Los cargos incluyen robo, extorsión, fraude electrónico, fraude bancario y apuestas ilegales.
Los acusados ​​fueron arrestados y comparecerán ante el tribunal próximamente.
¿Qué ha dicho la NBA sobre las acusaciones?
En un comunicado emitido el jueves, la NBA indicó que está revisando las acusaciones federales anunciadas y que está cooperando con las autoridades.
La liga añadió que Rozier y Billups serán suspendidos de sus equipos de inmediato.
“Nos tomamos estas acusaciones con la máxima seriedad, y la integridad de nuestro deporte sigue siendo nuestra máxima prioridad”, afirma el comunicado.
¿Quiénes son las famosas “Cinco Familias” de Nueva York?
Las autoridades afirmaron que el supuesto plan involucraba a cuatro de las cinco familias mafiosas más conocidas de Nueva York.
Las Cinco Familias (Bonanno, Colombo, Gambino, Genovese y Lucchese) han gobernado la mafia italoamericana de la ciudad desde 1931.
Importantes desmantelamientos mafiosos redujeron la prevalencia de la actividad mafiosa en la década de 1990, con la ayuda de la Ley de Organizaciones Corruptas e Influenciadas por el Crimen Organizado (RICO) y del entonces alcalde de Nueva York, Rudy Giuliani.
Sin embargo, como demuestran las acusaciones del jueves, la mafia no ha desaparecido por completo.
Las Cinco Familias forman parte de la mayor red mafiosa estadounidense-siciliana conocida como La Cosa Nostra (que significa “esta cosa nuestra”), y sus miembros suelen colaborar estrechamente con sus homólogos en Sicilia.
En Italia, los mafiosos consideran la ciudad de Nueva York un “gimnasio” donde sus miembros acuden para fortalecerse, según declaró anteriormente a la BBC Anna Sergi, profesora de criminología y experta en crimen organizado moderno.
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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s talent is not in question, but his methods are the subject of furious debate. His first two games of the 2025-26 season will do nothing to change that. On Thursday night, the reigning MVP showed exactly why he’s the most frustrating player in the league to guard.
Gilgeous-Alexander poured in a career-high 55 points in the Thunder’s 141-135 double-overtime win over the Indiana Pacers — the Thunder are the first team in NBA history to go to double-overtime in each of their first two games of a season — on 15 of 31 from the field and 23 of 26 from the free throw line. He also added eight rebounds and five assists.
His 55 points on Thursday were the third-most by a Thunder player since the team moved to Oklahoma City in 2008, and he’s already up to 90 points for the season. Only Wilt Chamberlain, Anthony Davis and Michael Jordan have scored more in the first two games of a season in NBA history.
Gilgeous-Alexander is also already 33 of 40 from the free throw line. His 23 makes and 26 attempts against the Pacers were both career-highs, and his 40 attempts are the most by a player in the first two games of a season in NBA history. He obviously won’t average 20 free throws over the course of the season, but he already has a massive lead in that department and is once again on pace to be among the league leaders.
Since Gilgeous-Alexander emerged as an All-Star during the 2022-23 season, he has finished third, second and second in total free throw attempts over the last three seasons. During that time, only Giannis Antetokounmpo (2,261) has shot more free throws than Gilgeous-Alexander (2,057). No one else even had 1,700.
Free throw attempts from 2022-23 to 2024-25 season
PlayerFTA
Giannis Antetokounmpo
2,261
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
2,057
Luka Dončić
1,697
Trae Young
1,607
DeMar DeRozan
1,576
Jayson Tatum
1,559
At times, the discussion about Gilgeous-Alexander’s ability to get to the line can go too far and overshadow his unique gifts as a scorer and athlete. Thursday night’s showing, however, was a reminder of why it keeps coming up.
It’s not just that Gilgeous-Alexander shoots so many free throws — it’s how he gets to the line. Whereas Antetokounmpo bullies his way there with brute strength, Gilgeous-Alexander is a trickster. He fools defenders (and occasionally officials) with an array of hesitations, fakes and pivots.
No player makes opponents shake their heads or raise their arms in dismay more often than Gilgeous-Alexander. The Pacers spent seven consecutive games guarding him in the Finals just a few months ago, and even they couldn’t help but be deceived.
Here’s a sampling from Thursday. Aside from the third clip, perhaps, all of these are clear fouls. But that doesn’t make them any less frustrating for the Pacers.
Just look at Jarace Walker’s face after the one in overtime.
Nothing sums up the experience of trying to defend Gilgeous-Alexander better than that.

INDIANAPOLIS – As if seven games over 18 days back in June weren’t enough – a total of 1,680 minutes head-to-head, duking it out for the Larry O’Brien Trophy – the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers had to push it when they renewed acquaintances Thursday.
A regular old 48-minute game? Bah, not enough. OK, so 53? We’re just getting started. It took two overtimes, 58 minutes in all, to pry them apart, with the Thunder winning 141-135 while logging their second double-OT work shift of the young season.
OKC got their rings before tipoff Tuesday at home and haven’t rested since. They needed an extra 10 to beat Houston that night, then doubled up again at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. At the rate they’re going, Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is either going to find himself chasing Wilt Chamberlain’s historic single-season marks for points (50.4) and minutes (48.5) per game – he’s at 45.0 and 46.2, respectively – or he’s going to break down by Thanksgiving.
A purported “Finals re-match” that smacked a bit of false advertising when it started – both teams were missing significant players from that championship round four months ago – the sight and smell of each other in competition produced a reasonable facsimile of those battles. In October.
Here are four takeaways from the OKC victory, in which the Thunder picked right up by beating an East foe the way they had repeatedly (29 of 30 times) last season:
1. Depth vs. desperation
One game into the 2025-26 regular season, the Thunder showed up for work Tuesday with seven players on the official NBA injury report. They’d already listed five before their opener (including All-Star Jalen Williams), then added Alex Caruso (concussion) and Cason Wallace (knee) after the grinder over the Rockets. Heckuva way to start a title defense.
“You deal with this stuff at different points in a season,” said coach Mark Daigneault. “Every team does. We happen to be dealing with it now but we try not to make any excuses about it.”
Indiana began its season arguably worse off, with team MVP Tyrese Haliburton out all year with a torn Achilles, sparkplug guard T.J. McConnell sidelined with a hamstring tear and center Myles Turner gone to Milwaukee as a free agent. The attrition got dialed up even more in the game: Andrew Nembhard, Haliburton’s replacement as Pacers point guard, suffered a bruised shoulder and was done by halftime. Wing Aaron Nesmith fouled out with half of the final quarter to go. Then Bennedict Mathurin did, too. And Ben Sheppard.
No wonder OKC could swarm Pascal Siakam with three defenders in the late moments – there was no one else left for them to cover.
The Thunder, by design, have a roster featuring what Pacers coach Rick Carlisle called “interchangeable pieces” and it showed. Instead of Williams or Wallace or Chet Holmgren this night, it was Ajay Mitchell (26 points) and Aaron Wiggins (23) providing the backup scoring.
From approximately the 55th minute, the Pacers got outscored 14-7, their cupboard bare.
“Disappointed but proud,” Carlisle said of his team afterward.
2. Mathurin as Indiana’s wild card
Nembhard had shown his skills in the playoffs, making him the logical choice to fill Haliburton’s void in driving the Pacers’ attack. Nesmith was the valuable 3-and-D guy rewarded with a contract extension right at the league’s deadline this week.
But Mathurin – who did not get an extension and basically shrugged it off – could be the guy Indiana leans on this season, rather unexpectedly.
The 6-foot-6 native of Montreal and the No. 6 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft dropped in Carlisle’s rotation when it mattered most. He averaged nearly 30 minutes a game last season, then dipped to just 17.5 in the playoffs, undermining himself with inconsistency and some headstrong ways.
But he started last night for only the second time since March (none at all in the postseason) and was the chief reason Indiana dragged the defending champs beyond three hours.
Mathurin scored 36 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, sank as many free throws (shooting 15-for-17) as the other Pacers combined and did about as well as anyone could trying to guard SGA. He was tempestuous, of course, frequently throwing up his arms and barking toward referees in frustration over whistles and non-whistles. But he was the co-star Siakam needed – until he fouled out just 49 seconds into the second overtime.
3. SGA might MV-Repeat
Gilgeous-Alexander leaves many in awe of his tremendous offensive skills. Others – likely fans of opposing teams – can be driven to distraction by his penchant for drawing fouls and free throws.
He lined up 26 at the charity stripe, making 23, and took seven before the game was five minutes old. It’s a scoring tool, sure, but it backs his defenders into foul trouble and enables OKC to set up its defense when their opponents start from a standstill 94 feet away.
Gilgeous-Alexander now has reached 50 points five times since joining the Thunder in 2019-20. That ties him for the most in franchise history with Russell Westbrook, one ahead of Kevin Durant. The 2025 Kia Most Valuable Player and scoring champion also contributed eight rebounds, five assists, two steals, a blocked shot and 15-of-31 shooting.
“He is thinking constantly about how he can get better,” Daigneault said. “He’s constantly self-reflecting. He’s constantly self-critical.”
The Thunder coach also lauded SGA’s ability to protect the ball. He has just five turnovers in 92+ minutes this season. That’s 1 per 18.4 minutes, better than his 14.2 rate last season or 14.3 over his first eight years.
4. Appreciation for Nancy Leonard
One of the most familiar and valuable people in Pacers history was honored with a video tribute and a moment of celebration immediately before the anthem. Nancy Leonard, wife of longtime coach and broadcaster Bobby (Slick) Leonard, died in September at age 93. And her contributions to the franchise went well beyond being the Hall of Fame coach’s spouse.
Nancy Leonard became the first female front-office executive in the NBA when she served as assistant general manager, and she unofficially acted for decades as the team’s den mother, welcoming them to Indianapolis, helping them find housing and hosting them in her home.
She reportedly started pro basketball’s first dance team, and in the mid-1970s she was the driving force behind a local telethon that raised funds necessary to keep the Pacers afloat. That enabled them to be one of the four ABA franchises absorbed into the NBA starting with the 1976-77 season.
Even after Slick’s death at age 88 in 2021, Nancy Leonard was a fixture behind the Pacers’ bench, sharing a handshake, a peck on the cheek and encouragement to Carlisle before games.
“Had it not been for her, the Pacers would not be here in all likelihood,” Carlisle said. “And if the Pacers had gone away in 1977, when she had the telethon to keep the team solvent, it’s probably pretty unlikely the [NFL] Colts would have come. So this would have been a Pottersville of professional sports without her.”

The Golden State Warriors defended their home court against the Denver Nuggets in their opponent’s season opener, but not every post-game conversation revolved around basketball. In the aftermath of one of the most surprising days, as federal investigations swirl around a scandal involving both players and coaches, Stephen Curry was asked about the cloud hanging over the sport.
In front of reporters, Curry made his stance clear. “I think on a whole everybody’s very mindful of what to do, what not to do,” Curry said after the game. “And understanding the landscape of sports right now in general — that’s not just an NBA thing. This is new territory for everybody. So I think on the whole we all are very responsible.”
It’s a composed answer in a moment where the NBA seems to be mired in chaos. Curry’s tone reflects the perspective of a veteran who knows that the sacredness of the game is under a national microscope: “The integrity of the game is fine. And then obviously we’ll let the situation play out, whatever happens, but I wouldn’t worry about that too much.”
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The 37-year-old didn’t shy away from the questions about the scandal, instead reframing them to remind everyone that players, teams, and even fans are navigating an unfamiliar situation: one where mistakes can have seismic consequences. His words landed like a steady hand on the league’s shoulder. On a day filled with headlines about arrests and federal indictments, Curry has positioned himself as a voice of calm.
For many around the league, this matters. The scandal involves Miami Heat player Terry Rozier, Portland Trailblazers coach Chauncey Billups, and former player Damon Jones, and is the most high-profile case of gambling related to NBA product since the Tim Donaghy referee case. This, on top of the Jontay Porter scandal last year, has led to debate about the same industry which helps fund the league’s broadcasts.
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Stephen Curry Balances Leadership Amid Chaos
Even apart from off-court controversy, Curry was sharp tonight. Golden State pulled off pulled off a 137-131 win in overtime against the reloaded Denver Nuggets in a matchup that had fans at the edge of their seats. The teams traded leads throughout regulation, and the pace was relentless. The intensity of the matchup reflected the high-stakes nature of an early season showdown, and the Warriors’ resilience and shot-making in the final minutes of regulation to push the contest into overtime.
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Curry led the charge for the Warriors, scoring 42 points and hitting the game-tying three-pointer in the final seconds of the fourth to force overtime. For the Nuggets, Nikola Jokic stunned with a 21-point, 13-rebound, 10- overtime triple double, but the real spotlight was on Aaron Gordon, who recorded 50 points on 10 three-pointers, breaking the record for themost points in a season opener for the Nuggets, previously 47 by Alex English. The overtime period saw the Warriors execute a match-sealing 12-2 run, coming back from being down in regulation and showing off the team’s depth and clutch ability.
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NEW YORK — The head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers and a player for the Miami Heat were arrested Thursday along with more than 30 other people in a takedown of two sprawling gambling operations that authorities said leaked inside information about NBA athletes and rigged poker games backed by Mafia families.
Portland Coach Chauncey Billups was charged with participating in a conspiracy to fix high-stakes card games tied to La Cosa Nostra organized crime families that cheated unsuspecting gamblers out of at least $7 million. Heat guard Terry Rozier was accused in a separate scheme of exploiting private information about players to win bets on NBA games.
The two indictments unsealed in New York create a massive cloud for the NBA — which opened its season this week — and show how certain types of wagers are vulnerable to massive fraud in the growing, multibillion-dollar legal sports-betting industry. Joseph Nocella, the top federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of New York, called it

TMZSports.com
Allen Iverson is offering up NBA advice to Cooper Flagg … and as a former No. 1 overall pick who went on to become a Hall of Famer — the Dallas Mavericks star sure would be wise to listen up!!
The Answer doled out several tips to this year’s top draft selection while chatting with TMZ Sports just before Flagg’s Thursday night debut.
Iverson’s first bit of guidance was straightforward … as he implored Flagg to take things

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The Department of Justice listed seven games that saw high-stakes wagers after non-public information was disclosed to gamblers.
Terry Rozier, the DOJ says, was directly involved in one of them, while Damon Jones is said to have given information about two Los Angeles Lakers games when he was an assistant coach for the team.
Rozier’s alleged involvement came through a game on March 23, 2023, when he told a childhood friend, Deniro Laster, that he would take himself out of a game early, citing an injury, so Laster could place wagers based on the information. Neither Hornets officials nor betting companies were made aware of Rozier’s plan, according to the indictment, and Rozier was not listed on the team’s injury report.
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Laster then allegedly sold that information to other co-conspirators, and numerous people placed wagers totaling roughly $200,000 on Rozier’s

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Pacers rode an emotional roller coaster Thursday night.
They stood and applauded in tribute to the late Nancy Leonard, the organization’s matriarch. They cherished the newest addition to the fieldhouse rafters, an Eastern Conference championship banner. The fans booed, naturally, as Oklahoma City’s players were introduced and roared at the sight of the dapperly dressed two-time All-Star Tyrese Haliburton.
Yes, opening night had a little bit of everything in this NBA Finals rematch.
“I’m sure our fans will provide a great environment for this game,” coach Rick Carlisle predicted before tipoff. “There are a lot of unknowns heading into this season without Tyrese, without T.J. (McConnell) to start the season. But we’ve got an eager group of competitive guys that I think are very much looking forward to competing in this game.”
The Thunder hoisted their title banner and received their championship rings before Tuesday’s 125-124 double-overtime victory over Houston at home.
This time, they hit the road for a contest that lived up to the expectations even if it was unusually ragged as the injured Haliburton and McConnell watched from the front row.
Haliburton sported glasses, a pink sport button down sweater, a white dress shirt and a pink tie in his first regular-season game since being ruled out for the season with a torn Achilles tendon. McConnell won’t play until November because of a hamstring injury and the Pacers lost their other starting guard, Andrew Nembhard, with a sore left shoulder in the first half. Nembhard did not return.
But even without Haliburton in uniform, the night started with a bang.
Instead of holding a pregame ceremony unfurling the banner, it was just there when fans entered the arena. And rather than holding a traditional moment of silence for Leonard, who helped save the franchise in 1977, the sellout crowd applauded as a video tribute played on the scoreboard before the national anthem. The 93-year-old Leonard died last month.
Just the thought of what she meant to the franchise rekindled some emotional thoughts from Carlisle, who laughingly recounted the story of how she and her husband, Hall of Fame coach Bobby “Slick” Leonard, once guilted Indiana’s players and coaches into parasailing.
“Had it not been for her, the Pacers wouldn’t be here in all likelihood,” Carlisle said. “And if the Pacers had gone away in 1977 when they had the telethon to keep the team, it’s probably pretty unlikely the Colts would have come and so this would have been a Pottersville of professional sports without her and certainly Slick as well.”
In June, Gainbridge Fieldhouse was rocking in the first quarter of Game 7 as fans came to watch the game in Oklahoma City on the big screen, then fell silent as they watched Haliburton crash to the floor, unable to get up. The Pacers went on to lose the game, falling short of their first NBA crown.
Haliburton, who isn’t expected to play this season, was his usually joyous self. He said in an interview with ESPN that he recently began running and jumping.
The rest of the Pacers tried to begin showing they remain capable of another run without him against a Thunder team whose expectations are much clearer.
“It’s very, very difficult because it’s a great team,” Carlisle said of the champions. “They have some guys that are out tonight, but they’re so deep and they have so many interchangeable pieces that it doesn’t really mean much that they’re missing a few guys. We have a lot of new guys, too.”

NEW YORK (AP) — The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people, including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures, on charges of illegal sports betting has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of professional sports gambling across the U.S.
Since widespread legalization, the multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy to place wagers on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. It’s just about impossible to go to a basketball, football, baseball or other pro game today — or watch a matchup on TV — without seeing ads for sports betting.
Fans can place wagers from their stadium seats, while “Bet” tickers scroll on TV sports broadcasts. Star athletes are frequently at the center of ads promoting it all.
In Thursday’s indictment, federal investigators accused Rozier and other defendants of breaking the law by exploiting private information about players to win bets on NBA games. Rozier’s lawyer, Jim Trusty, said in a statement that his client is “not a gambler” and “looks forward to winning this fight.”
A separate indictment alleges Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and others participated in a conspiracy to fix high-stakes card games. Billups’ attorney declined to comment Thursday.
Regulating sports wagering has proven to be a challenge — and experts warn about the ramifications for gamblers who typically lose money. Professional leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has raised eyebrows.
Here’s what we know.
Explosion of legalized sports betting
Sports betting is probably as old as sports itself. But in the U.S., legal gambling really took off in 2018.
That’s when the Supreme Court struck down the Professional Amateur Sports Protection Act, which barred sports betting in most states. Once allowed only in Nevada, sports betting is now permitted online or in retail locations in 38 states and Washington, D.C. Missouri will become the 39th state on Dec. 1.
Experts say the biggest jump has been online, through smartphone apps and platforms like DraftKings and FanDuel. Through the third quarter of this year, legal sports betting generated $10 billion in revenue, up about 19% from the same period a year ago, according to the American Gaming Association.
The industry argues that legal wagering generates money for states and can deter illegal betting. Major operators point to technology they use to monitor suspicious activity. FanDuel said Thursday’s news illustrates “the stark contrast between legal and illegal betting markets.”
Who benefits?
There is plenty of money on the table both for those who place winning bets and the platforms that make it possible. The NBA and other pro sports leagues have also created revenue streams by partnering with sportsbooks and reaping advertising dollars.
Live game stats provided by leagues are key to the sports world’s relationship with the gambling industry. When you’re able to bet what the next pitch in a baseball game is going to be, that’s because Major League Baseball is selling data to platforms “for a pretty high price,” according to Isaac Rose-Berman, whose research focuses on sports betting as a fellow at the American Institute for Boys and Men.
The NBA has a partnership with Sportradar for its data rights. Sportradar, in turn, provides FanDuel Sportsbook official NBA statistics. When the deal was announced in 2022, Sportradar touted it as a way “to monetize our long-term partnership with the NBA.”
How is sports betting regulated?
Each state has its own regulations and tax rates for sports betting. A handful restrict where you can place bets — allowing users to use mobile apps, but only while they’re physically inside a casino or within a certain radius of a stadium, for example. Others limit which betting platforms you can use or what you can bet on.
“States sort of opened up a can of worms, and now some of them are starting to realize just how crazy this sports betting world sort is,” said Wayne Taylor, a professor of marketing at Southern Methodist University.
An even stickier factor is when players and other team or league personnel are involved. The NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL all prohibit employees and players from betting on their own league games, although some gambling in separate areas is allowed.
Legalized betting has certain security advantages in that unusual betting patterns — such as large bets being placed on a random player’s performance — can be immediately flagged. In some cases, sportsbooks have taken down odds on certain events to protect against manipulation.
Still, experts like Taylor note that companies’ own financial interests may bring some of that into question. And across the sports market, he says the large number of players and scope of micro bet possibilities makes potential manipulation “easier to hide.”
What is prop betting?
A prop is a type of wager that allows gamblers to bet on whether a player will exceed a certain statistical number, such as whether a basketball player will finish over or under a certain total of points, rebounds, assists and more.
This kind of bet is key to the sports betting probe announced Thursday. Investigators pointed to a March 23, 2023, game involving Rozier, then playing for the Charlotte Hornets.
Rozier played the first 9 minutes and 36 seconds of that game — and not only did he not return that night, citing a foot issue, but he did not play again that season. He finished with five points, four rebounds and two assists — a productive opening quarter, but well below his usual total output for a full game. At the time, many bettors turned to social media to say that something shady occurred regarding prop bets involving his stats for that night.
More broadly, the NBA has expressed concern about prop bets, while other sports leagues have worried about the potential for manipulation.
Earlier this year, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine urged his state’s gambling commission to ban prop bets after Major League Baseball placed two Cleveland Guardians pitchers on leave during a sports betting investigation.
What are other pitfalls and social implications?
Sports betting also faces criticism for opening the door to addictive gambling.
“The fact that it’s normalized, the advertising is aggressive, it’s available 24/7, the micro bets — all of this is adding up to tremendous increase in usage across individuals,” said Taylor, citing algorithms and other incentives betting platforms use to increase engagement.
Rose-Berman notes that platforms make the most off of returning “biggest losers.” Recent research suggests that young men in low-income communities are particularly affected by financial consequences tied to sports gambling.
“Upwards of 90% of sports bettors are not really going to experience significant negative impacts — but it’s really concentrated among those big losers and it’s going to be devastating for them,” he said.
_____
Associated Press reporters Tim Reynolds in Miami, David Lieb in Jefferson City, Missouri, and Alan Suderman in Richmond, Virginia, contributed to this report.

NEW YORK (AP) — The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people, including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures, on charges of illegal sports betting has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of professional sports gambling across the U.S.
Since widespread legalization, the multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy to place wagers on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. It’s just about impossible to go to a basketball, football, baseball or other pro game today — or watch a matchup on TV — without seeing ads for sports betting.
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In Thursday’s indictment, federal investigators accused Rozier and other defendants of breaking the law by exploiting private information about players to win bets on NBA games. Rozier’s lawyer, Jim Trusty, said in a statement that his client is “not a gambler” and “looks forward to winning this fight.”
A separate indictment alleges Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and others participated in a conspiracy to fix high-stakes card games. Billups’ attorney declined to comment Thursday.
Regulating sports wagering has proven to be a challenge — and experts warn about the ramifications for gamblers who typically lose money. Professional leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has raised eyebrows.
Here’s what we know.
Sports betting is probably as old as sports itself. But in the U.S., legal gambling really took off in 2018.
That’s when the Supreme Court struck down the Professional Amateur Sports Protection Act, which barred sports betting in most states. Once allowed only in Nevada, sports betting is now permitted online or in retail locations in 38 states and Washington, D.C. Missouri will become the 39th state on Dec. 1.
Experts say the biggest jump has been online, through smartphone apps and platforms like DraftKings and FanDuel. Through the third quarter of this year, legal sports betting generated $10 billion in revenue, up about 19% from the same period a year ago, according to the American Gaming Association.
The industry argues that legal wagering generates money for states and can deter illegal betting. Major operators point to technology they use to monitor suspicious activity. FanDuel said Thursday’s news illustrates “the stark contrast between legal and illegal betting markets.”
There is plenty of money on the table both for those who place winning bets and the platforms that make it possible. The NBA and other pro sports leagues have also created revenue streams by partnering with sportsbooks and reaping advertising dollars.
Live game stats provided by leagues are key to the sports world’s relationship with the gambling industry. When you’re able to bet what the next pitch in a baseball game is going to be, that’s because Major League Baseball is selling data to platforms “for a pretty high price,” according to Isaac Rose-Berman, whose research focuses on sports betting as a fellow at the American Institute for Boys and Men.
The NBA has a partnership with Sportradar for its data rights. Sportradar, in turn, provides FanDuel Sportsbook official NBA statistics. When the deal was announced in 2022, Sportradar touted it as a way “to monetize our long-term partnership with the NBA.”
Each state has its own regulations and tax rates for sports betting. A handful restrict where you can place bets — allowing users to use mobile apps, but only while they’re physically inside a casino or within a certain radius of a stadium, for example. Others limit which betting platforms you can use or what you can bet on.
“States sort of opened up a can of worms, and now some of them are starting to realize just how crazy this sports betting world sort is,” said Wayne Taylor, a professor of marketing at Southern Methodist University.
An even stickier factor is when players and other team or league personnel are involved. The NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL all prohibit employees and players from betting on their own league games, although some gambling in separate areas is allowed.
Legalized betting has certain security advantages in that unusual betting patterns — such as large bets being placed on a random player’s performance — can be immediately flagged. In some cases, sportsbooks have taken down odds on certain events to protect against manipulation.
Still, experts like Taylor note that companies’ own financial interests may bring some of that into question. And across the sports market, he says the large number of players and scope of micro bet possibilities makes potential manipulation “easier to hide.”
A prop is a type of wager that allows gamblers to bet on whether a player will exceed a certain statistical number, such as whether a basketball player will finish over or under a certain total of points, rebounds, assists and more.
This kind of bet is key to the sports betting probe announced Thursday. Investigators pointed to a March 23, 2023, game involving Rozier, then playing for the Charlotte Hornets.
Rozier played the first 9 minutes and 36 seconds of that game — and not only did he not return that night, citing a foot issue, but he did not play again that season. He finished with five points, four rebounds and two assists — a productive opening quarter, but well below his usual total output for a full game. At the time, many bettors turned to social media to say that something shady occurred regarding prop bets involving his stats for that night.
More broadly, the NBA has expressed concern about prop bets, while other sports leagues have worried about the potential for manipulation.
Earlier this year, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine urged his state’s gambling commission to ban prop bets after Major League Baseball placed two Cleveland Guardians pitchers on leave during a sports betting investigation.
Sports betting also faces criticism for opening the door to addictive gambling.
“The fact that it’s normalized, the advertising is aggressive, it’s available 24/7, the micro bets — all of this is adding up to tremendous increase in usage across individuals,

Former NBA player Damon Jones was criminally charged in a new indictment that suggests Jones leaked information about the injury status of LeBron James to sports bettors before a February 2023 game while he was affiliated with the Los Angeles Lakers.
The indictment also suggests that Jones, 41, leaked information about Anthony Davis before a January 2024 game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, CNBC reports. Jones allegedly told a co-defendant in the case that a star Laker identified only as Player 4 was “probable” for the game. Davis was the only player listed as

The Indiana Pacers fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a closely contested, double-overtime season opener, but it wasn’t just the scoreboard causing a stir. Late in the game, a controversial sequence took place: Pacers forward Obi Toppin managed to steal the ball off an inbound attempt from the Thunder’s Chet Holmgren, but the officials ruled that OKC had managed to call a timeout before the ball was inbounded. Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle had to walk the tightrope in the post-game conference.
When asked directly if he had received an explanation for the timeout call, Carlisle replied, “I’m not talking about the refs. If I talk about the refs, I’ll be fined an exorbitant amount of money.” His humorous words highlighted the issues for the Pacers coach: even one of the league’s most seasoned coaches faces significant financial penalty if he publicly questions refereeing decisions.
This is a developing story.

FBI director Kash Patel skewered ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith for suggesting that President Trump was behind the arrests of NBA stars and coaches in an illegal sports betting scheme.
“I’m the FBI director. I decide which arrest to conduct and which not to conduct,” Patel told Fox News host Laura Ingraham on “The Ingraham Angle” Thursday.
“That may be the single dumbest thing I’ve ever heard out of anyone in modern history. And I live most of my time in Washington, DC,” he railed against Smith’s suggestion.
“It’s right up there with Adam Schiff. We arrest people for crimes,” he added.
Patel announced the arrest of over 30 NBA hot shots and mafia family members in a stunning take-down of two separate illegal gambling-related cases Thursday morning.
Smith warned viewers on “First Take” shortly after the arrests to expect more crackdowns under the Trump administration.
“Tell me when we’ve seen that… We’ve seen accusations before. We’ve seen athletes get in trouble with the law before. You don’t see the director of the FBI having a press conference. It’s not coincidental. It’s not an accident. It’s a statement, and it’s a warning that more is coming,” Smith said on-air Thursday.
“This is just the tip of the iceberg,” Smith said without providing any proof. “It’s very concerning. We don’t know where this is gonna go. But everybody better brace themselves, because he’s coming,” the provocative host said in reference to Trump.
He referenced promises to bring Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to Bad Bunny’s planned Super Bowl halftime headline show and listed the WNBA as a possible next target of the administration.
Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, and former NBA player Damon Jones are among those indicted in the historic bust.
Thirty-one people — including members of the Bonanno, Gambino, Genovese and Lucchese mafia families, and coaches and players from the Charlotte Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Lakers and Toronto Raptors — have been arrested in the multimillion-dollar scheme, officials said.
The gambling antics netted upwards of $7 million over two years, according to the FBI.