This week, three members of the NBA fraternity –Portland Trail Blazers head coach and Hall of Fame guard Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat point guard Terry Rozier, and 11-year NBA veteran Damon Jones –were arrested as part of a wide-ranging investigation related to illegal gambling. Since the news first broke, each time a new report comes out, a new name makes the list. Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, whose injury status was used as insider info by Jones, is really neither a victim nor a suspect but an unwitting participant. However, others who are associated with those illicit gambling operations might turn out to be part of the scheme.
Enter Hall of Fame forward-center Kevin Garnett, who won a championship with the Boston Celtics in 2008.
How Deep Was Kevin Garnett’s Role In Illegal Poker Games
When the FBI was conducting their operation, there were two separate cases: one about illegal sports betting, and another about rigged poker games organized by La Cosa Nostra. A report from NBA journalist Pablo Torre claims that “a number of” former professional athletes were wrapped into that world. Notably, Torre recently exposed potential cap circumvention by the Los Angeles Clippers in an investigation that the league has now taken up themselves.
UPDATE: A number of former pro athletes played at private poker games organized by those indicted by the DOJ in “Operation Royal Flush.”
One of them — according to multiple sources with direct knowledge of a game that took place in 2019 — was Kevin Garnett. @pablofindsout https://t.co/9UEijIez8R
— Pablo Torre
(@PabloTorre) October 24, 2025
According to Torre, one of the “private poker games” that Garnett took part in took place in 2019.
Whether KG knew it was rigged will have to be determined by authorities. However, as he hasn’t been indicated by the FBI, it’s unlikely that he did. Bearing that in mind, Torre reports that Garnett left that 2019 poker game early. He initially arrived because he believed it was an afterparty.
Where Were The Poker Games Played?
The rigged poker games that Billups and Jones took part in were played in a luxury townhouse in New York’s Greenwich Village, according to The Telegraph reporter Susie Coen (h/t Yahoo Sports). Some also took place in Las Vegas and Miami. Featuring deep-pocketed players, these games were part of a scheme run by four New York crime families. Using x-ray tables, fraudulent shuffling machines, and paid-off sports stars, they were able to cut a profit while acting as security.
In the end, more than 30 people were charged in connection with the gambling investigations known as “Operation Royal Flush.”
Understanding The Billups-KG Connection
The FBI believes Billups was being used as a face to attract high-rollers to those private poker games. One of the interesting aspects of Billups’ involvement is his relationship with Garnett, as the two are very close friends. In fact, Billups is the godfather to Garnett’s second daughter, Ciara. They consider each other family after having known each other since high school.
So, with KG being present at at least one of those games, his involvement understandably comes into question.
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