Marcus Morris was arrested in Florida on Sunday over a charge related to fraud, and the longtime NBA veteran has now shared his side of the story.
Morris was taken into custody on Sunday by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office and held without bond for a felony warrant that was issued in another state. The charge indicated the 35-year-old wrote a check with insufficient funds, and we have since learned that Morris was accused of stealing money from Las Vegas casinos.
Court documents show that Morris has been accused of defrauding two Las Vegas casinos to the tune of $265,000 by writing checks he knew would bounce. Morris allegedly wrote a bad check for $115,000 to the MGM Grand in May 2024 and never paid it back when the checks bounced. He allegedly pulled a similar stunt at the Wynn Las Vegas Hotel and Casino a month later.
Morris addressed the situation with a lengthy statement on Instagram Wednesday. He admitted to taking out markers to gamble and that he may not have paid his debt in a timely fashion, but he says he could have easily come up with the money had he known he was going to be arrested. Morris also took offense to the allegation that he engaged in any form of fraud.
Morris said he has paid back the money he owed but was forced to sit in jail for two days. He said he was in jail for 51 hours straight and claimed he was not given food or water.
You can read much of the statement, which has been edited for profanity by Larry Brown Sports:
“The word FRAUD was thrown on my name as if I took something or really wrote a check to a casino in exchange for cash. Did I take out a marker to gamble yes. Was this my first time no. I’ve been enjoying my off time and doing what I like every year at some point in Vegas at a high level for years and that’s not just gambling. I really thought the amount of money and time I spent there would really have value … so yea I took my time to pay back the money that could of (sic) been handle (sic) on the spot if I’d known that I would have been locked up like I was trying to flee or a flight risk. I was just in Vegas no phone call visit or nothing. Actually gambled and had mansions at both casinos.
“The key word I won’t except if (sic) fraud because this had nothing to do with no money exchange or me not being able to pay something. My Character means everything and my family as well. I hate for Vegas to really make me look like a criminal over a petty couple hundred. And really made me sit 51 hours over that s–. What hurt the most is i (sic) really was chained up and sitting in jail 24 hours locked down. Lesson learned. Im (sic) not ducking or hiding from s– and most of you know that about me. Check the stats never owed or needed money for anything. So did I go past the time I needed to repay yea probably did, did I know they would locked (sic) me up, helllllll no. I would pay a thing to stay outta jail. Money paid back and lesson learned.
“FRAUD I can’t live with. But I’m not going on every media site to clear anything up. If I didn’t have it I would still be siting (sic). Also having a millionaire brother in my corner doesn’t hurt either yall (sic) be blessed man!”
Morris then unloaded on the Las Vegas casinos for the way he was treated.
“My last thing is F— VEGAS. To treat me like that was wild. I’ve gambled on that properties (sic) over 10 plus years! We could’ve handled that MOB style before that option. Never been in cuffs or apart of any FRUD (sic) s– in my life and it’s going to stay that way! … Moral of the story is Vegas don’t care about nothing but they bread and if and when they feel they will move forward. Lesson learned!”
There is obviously a huge discrepancy between the allegations and Morris’ version of the story. Morris has been accused of deliberately writing bad checks to a casino in order to rack up a debt he never intended to pay back. That would constitute fraud. Simply forgetting to repay a debt in a timely manner would not.
Morris, who is currently a free agent, has earned more than $100 million during his NBA career.
Morris last played for the Cleveland Cavaliers during the 2023-24 season. He signed a deal with the New York Knicks prior to last season but was waived two weeks later.
Morris played for several different teams since he was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the 14th overall pick in 2011. At his peak, he averaged 19.6 points per game in 43 contests with the New York Knicks during the 2019-20 season. He has averaged 12 points and 4.4 rebounds per game for his career.
Earlier this year, Morris began making appearances on ESPN’s “First Take.” His television career got off to a bang when he used a controversial term to describe Memphis Grizzlies players while live on the air.
