Published April 16, 2026
Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones is expected to be the first person to plead guilty in a gambling case that led to the arrests of more than 30 people, including known mobsters and other basketball officials.
Jones’ change of prosecution hearing is scheduled for April 28 in Brooklyn federal court, according to Thursday’s court filing. The event was originally scheduled for May 6th, but was changed due to requests from stakeholders.
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Jones, 49, previously pleaded not guilty to separate charges accusing him of profiting from fraudulent poker games and providing nonpublic information to sports bettors about injuries to star players LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Jones is charged with wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy in both cases.
A message seeking comment was left with his attorney, Kenneth Montgomery. “We may be taking a plea deal,” he told the judge at Jones’ arraignment in November.
Jones, a former teammate of James, was arrested last October along with Portland Trail Blazers head coach and Basketball Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other sports bettors on suspicion of falsifying injury information.
Jones was one of three people charged with both poker and sports betting. He is free on bail.
Jones, a native of Galveston, Texas, played for 10 teams in 11 seasons from 1999 to 2009 and earned more than $20 million. He and James played together in Cleveland from 2005 to 2008, and Jones served as an unofficial assistant coach for James’ Los Angeles Lakers during the 2022-2023 season.
Prosecutors said Jones sold, or attempted to sell, non-public information to bettors that James was injured and would not play in a game against the Milwaukee Bucks on February 9, 2023, by texting an unnamed co-conspirator to “bet big on Milwaukee tonight before the information gets out.”
James was not listed on the Lakers’ injury report at the time of the text message, but the National Basketball Association’s all-time leading scorer was later removed from the game with what prosecutors said was a lower-body injury, and the Lakers lost the game 115-106.
Prosecutors said on Jan. 15, 2024, sports bettor Marveth Fairey paid Jones approximately $2,500 for information that Davis, then a forward and center for the Lakers, would be limited in playing time against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to an injury.
Mr. Fairley then bet $100,000 that the Thunder would win, but prosecutors said his bet was wrong. Davis played his usual game, collecting 27 points and 15 rebounds in a 112-105 win over the Lakers, prompting Fairley to request repayment of his $2,500 fee, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors say Jones was among the former NBA players used to lure unsuspecting players into rigged poker games using modified shuffle machines, hidden cameras, special sunglasses and even an X-ray machine built into the tables.
According to the indictment, Jones was paid $2,500 to carefully cheat others involved in the scheme at a match in the Hamptons. Prosecutors said his instructor compared those people to James and NBA All-Star Stephen Curry. Prosecutors said Jones was told to fold his hands when in doubt.
Prosecutors said Jones responded by texting, “You know what I’m doing!!”
Prosecutors said the poker scheme often relied on illegal poker games run by New York crime families and called for a portion of the proceeds to be shared with the Gambino, Genovese and Bonano crime families.
Officials said in court documents that members of these families also took part in acts of violence, including assaults, extortion and robbery, to repay debts and ensure the continued success of the operation.
A hot hand from outside the three-point arc, Jones once declared himself “the best shooter in the world” in an interview with insidehoops.com. He played in every regular season game for three consecutive seasons from 2003 to 2006.
After his playing days, he worked as a shooting consultant for the Cavaliers and served as an assistant coach when James’ team won the NBA championship in 2016.
