Sports betting in America has exploded into a cultural and economic juggernaut since the Supreme Court’s landmark 2018 decision to strike down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act. Nearly 40 states have since legalized sports wagering, with the industry quickly growing into a multi-billion-dollar behemoth. But as the money and excitement surge, so too do the scandals and anxieties about the integrity of professional and collegiate athletics.
The last week of October 2025 has proven especially tumultuous. On October 27, the NCAA approved a controversial rule change that will allow student athletes and athletic department staff to place bets—but only on professional sports. The move, set to take effect November 1, 2025, comes amid a rapidly changing landscape. Yet, within 24 hours of the NCAA’s announcement, the FBI arrested more than 30 individuals in connection with a sprawling sports gambling and betting scheme that reads like something straight out of a Martin Scorsese film. The indictment, filed by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, alleges a sophisticated operation run by four New York Mafia families, with tentacles reaching across 11 states and using hidden cameras, programmable card shuffling machines, and even X-ray tables to rig poker games and defraud victims of tens of millions of dollars.
Among those allegedly involved are some of the NBA’s most recognizable names. Chauncey Billups, Hall of Fame player and current head coach of the Portland Trailblazers, is accused of leveraging his celebrity status to lure unsuspecting victims into the scheme. According to authorities, Damon Jones—a former player and assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers—shared inside information regarding LeBron James’ health with bettors back in 2023. The most shocking perhaps is the arrest of Terry Rozier, the Miami Heat point guard with a $100-million contract, who now faces allegations of tipping off gamblers about leaving a March 2023 game early due to a supposed injury. This allowed his co-conspirators to bet the “under” on his performance and walk away with significant profits, sharing the spoils with Rozier.
“The level of sophistication alleged in one 22-page indictment reads like a Scorsese script,” wrote LZ Granderson in the Los Angeles Times, “with four New York Mafia families, a current NBA player and a head coach all allegedly involved.” These aren’t isolated incidents, either. According to Rich Lowry, writing on October 27, 2025, “A wave of sports betting scandals is shaking pro leagues, raising concerns about corruption, addiction and the impact of legalized gambling on the integrity of American athletics.”
The NBA is feeling the heat. For Commissioner Adam Silver, the timing of the arrests couldn’t be worse. The league, already reeling from the lifetime ban imposed on former Toronto Raptors center Jontay Porter for intentionally tanking his performance to relieve gambling debts, now faces questions about whether fans can trust what they see on the court. “The league can’t have fans thinking every time a player sits a shady associate has placed a pricey bet on DraftKings that he’ll score fewer than 10 points,” Lowry observed. The specter of corruption isn’t limited to basketball: two Cleveland Guardians pitchers are currently under investigation for suspicious betting activity tied to specific pitches, and the NCAA recently banned three basketball players from Fresno State and San Jose State for betting on themselves and manipulating their performances.
These developments have reignited a fierce debate about the wisdom of legal sports betting. Proponents argue that legalization brings transparency and regulation, while critics warn that the industry is inherently corrupting and preys on the most vulnerable. The numbers are staggering: According to ESPN, Americans wagered $150 billion and lost approximately $13 billion on sports betting in 2023 alone. FanDuel reported that at the height of last year’s Super Bowl, nearly 70,000 wagers were being placed every minute. The UC San Diego study found that internet searches seeking help with gambling addiction jumped 23% between 2018 and June 2024, a chilling statistic that underscores the human cost behind the glitzy marketing campaigns and celebrity endorsements.
“The rise of sports gambling has caused a wave of financial and familial misery, one that falls disproportionately on the most economically precarious households,” Charles Lehman of the Manhattan Institute wrote in The Atlantic. Lehman noted that a small fraction of bettors—just 5%—accounted for 70% of all money wagered in New Jersey during late 2020 and early 2021. In other words, the industry’s profits are fueled by the compulsions of those with the most severe gambling problems.
Public opinion, however, remains firmly in favor of legalized sports betting. Polling sponsored by the American Gaming Association shows that two-thirds of Americans support it, with no significant difference between Democrats and Republicans. “America loves its sports betting, an obsession that transcends partisan politics,” Lowry wrote. Yet, as the scandals multiply, calls for reform are growing louder. Many experts and commentators now urge states to restrict proposition bets—wagers on the individual performance of players—since these are far more susceptible to manipulation than bets on entire teams or outcomes.
The NCAA’s new rule is a flashpoint in this broader struggle. With roughly 40,000 NCAA basketball players and about 8,000 coaches, the risks of allowing any form of betting—even if limited to professional sports—are profound. “How confident are you that March Madness won’t take on a different meaning if coaches and players are allowed to bet on games and find themselves underwater?” Granderson asks. The decision-making part of the human brain, he notes, isn’t fully developed until age 25, yet the NCAA’s rule would let 18-year-olds with newfound “name, image, likeness” money wade into dangerous waters. “Given what just unfolded in the NBA this week, the responsible move for the NCAA would be to pause the rule change… and reassess the risks.”
It’s a cautionary tale with echoes from the past. The Black Sox scandal nearly destroyed baseball a century ago, and Pete Rose’s lifetime ban for betting on games remains a cautionary legend. Yet the stakes today may be even higher, with technology, money, and access all supercharged. The industry is here to stay, but the question remains: Can American sports safeguard their integrity, or will the next scandal be just around the corner?
As the NCAA’s new betting rule looms and law enforcement cracks down on high-profile schemes, the debate over sports gambling’s place in American life is far from settled. The coming weeks—and the next wave of headlines—will show just how deep the game goes.
