Boston Celtics
“I’m not sure what the answer is, but definitely something that people have to spend more time having conversations about.”
Jaylen Brown admitted that he isn’t fully up to date on the details in the illegal gambling scandal that led to the arrests of three NBA figures, but he isn’t a fan of the betting culture that’s made its way into sports.
The Celtics star called for more player support from the NBA on sports gambling, believing players have been made vulnerable to social media attacks due to wagers placed on them.
“That whole world was introduced a couple years ago, and I don’t think they took players into consideration – especially with the energy, the behavior that goes around gambling and how that directly correlates with players,” Brown told reporters on Friday. “We don’t benefit from any of the profits, but we’ve got to deal with a lot of the extra negativity and scrutiny behind all the gambling stuff.
“On top of that, it creates more integrity issues. I’m not sure what the answer is, but definitely something that people have to spend more time having conversations about.”
Brown added that he thought the league could’ve done “a lot more” to help prepare players on how to address the media about the gambling scandal, which included a former teammate of his, Terry Rozier.
“Even in the aftermath, I don’t think little care or attention to detail goes into it. You make X amount of money or XYZ, you should be able to deal with the extra negativity, the people approaching you about parlays,” Brown said. “It creates a negative discourse around the game and players when people have money involved.”
Brown, who is a vice president of the National Basketball Players Association, said he hasn’t heard once from the NBA about how to protect players from upset gamblers who harass them at games or online.
Several athletes across multiple sports have brought up their concerns about what fans have said to them since sports gambling became legal in 2018. Student-athletes have also dealt with harassment, with a 2024 study revealing that one-in-three student-athletes received abusive messages related to betting.
As for the scandal that led to the arrests of Rozier, Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, and former NBA player Damon Jones on Thursday, Brown said he was still processing the details from the event. However, Brown said he was surprised to see Rozier, who he played with for three seasons, be involved in the scandal.
“It was kinda crazy, seeing the stuff that’s going on,” Brown said. “Sometimes, it’s hard to tell what’s real and what’s not online and on the internet because there’s so much misinformation.
“I guess we’ll get to the bottom of it and see what’s what. Until then, everything’s yet to be determined.”
Rozier was accused of telling people that he would leave a game early when he was with the Hornets in February 2023, allowing them to place wagers on his player props. Billups, meanwhile, was seemingly implicated in Rozier’s indictment, matching the description of “Co-Conspirator 8” and allegedly giving inside info about a Trail Blazers game in March 2023. Billups was also accused of helping the mafia rig poker games.
Brown said that the players’ union will be involved with Rozier’s case, saying that it has a “crisis management team” and “investigative people on our side.” But the union is also still in the information-gathering process, according to Brown.
“My job as vice president of the union is to get to the bottom of it and figure it out,” Brown said. “I know some of those guys personally, obviously Terry played here. It’s not conducive of his character but we’ll get to the bottom of it as a union and figure out what the next steps for it is.”
As the scandal has put a dark cloud over the NBA, Brown said he won’t let it put him in a sullen mood. However, Brown also has some advice for those who might place wagers on his performance.
“People bet. Don’t bet on me, I’m going to tell you that right now,” Brown said. “But I don’t know how it affects everybody else. That’s a personal question.”
