New details have trickled out this week about the betting scandal involving Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier.
During a 2023 game, a professional bettor successfully hit on 30-of-30 wagers involving Rozier, David Purdum of ESPN reported on Friday. The game in question took place on March 23 during a meeting between the Charlotte Hornets (who then employed Rozier) and the New Orleans Pelicans.
Purdum notes that a bettor in Biloxi, Miss. placed $13,759 in bets on Rozier’s unders in the span of 46 minutes that morning. Rozier then went on to leave the game that night against the Pelicans after just 10 minutes played due to a cited foot injury. He finished with five points, four rebounds, and two assists (all under his betting lines). As a result, all 30 wagers placed by the bettor won.
Additionally, Purdum says at least six sportsbooks in multiple states detected unusual betting on Rozier’s props during that March 23, 2023 date in question (with most of the betting activity reportedly taking place in Louisiana and in Mississippi). Harrah’s Gulf Coast, the casino where the Biloxi bettor placed his wagers on Rozier, originally refused to pay out the bets, citing a house rule on “rigging” as well as a suspicion of “inside information.” However, they did eventually end up honoring the wagers, resulting in the Biloxi bettor winning a sum of $13,017.70.
You can read Purdum’s full report on the situation here.
Rozier, who played his college ball at Louisville, remains the subject of a federal investigation, which is part of the same probe that led to the NBA’s lifetime ban of former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter. Shams Charania of ESPN reported last month that Rozier had essentially been cleared, but we learned earlier this week that was not actually the case and that Rozier is still under investigation.
The NBA conducted an investigation of their own into Rozier but found no violation of league rules. Rozier, who is still signed with the Heat for $26.6 million next season, has not yet been charged with a crime. But his professional future looks extremely uncertain amid the ongoing federal investigation, and the Heat notably just made a big trade for another guard as well.
