Dec. 9 (UPI) — Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier pleaded not guilty Monday to federal charges in an alleged illegal gambling and sports rigging scheme. He was one of 34 people arrested in October, including former NBA player Damon Jones and Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups.

Rozier, 31, appeared Monday in a Brooklyn federal courtroom on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit wire fraud over a period of 15 months, beginning in December 2022. He was released on $3 million bond after being placed on unpaid administrative leave by the NBA.

This season, the 10-year veteran would have made $26.6 million as part of his four-year $96.3 million contract.

“Your winning streak has ended,” U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Joseph Nocella told reporters. “Violating the law is a losing proposition.”

Rozier’s attorney, who said the arrest has been “professionally devastating” for his client, asked that Rozier’s case reach a quick resolution. He also planned to file a motion to dismiss.

“We still have factual innocence to deal with, but for now, getting an opportunity to litigate a significant legal motion is a good thing,” Rozier’s attorney Jim Trusty said.

“They wanted the misplaced glory of embarrassing a professional athlete with a perp walk,” Trusty added. “That tells you a lot about the motivations in this case.”

Co-defendant Deniro Laster was also in court Monday and pleaded not guilty. He was released on $50,000 bond.

Rozier and Jones are accused of participating in an illegal sports betting scheme that “exploited confidential information about NBA athletes and teams,” spanning 11 states, according to Nocella.

Other co-conspirators have been previously charged for their roles in the alleged scheme, including former Toronto Raptors center Jontay Porter, who has been banned from the NBA.

Nocella said the scheme involved betting on inside, non-public information using connections with players and coaches for information on when players would sit out future games or leave games early due to alleged injuries. They involved players on the Charlotte Hornets, Los Angeles Lakers, Raptors and Blazers.

A second case revealed the alleged use of “wireless cheating technology to run rigged poker games across the United States.” There are 31 defendants in that FBI investigation with more than a dozen from Mafia families.

NEW YORK (AP) — Miami Heat player Terry Rozier is set to appear in a New York court on charges he helped gamblers placing bets on his performance in NBA games.

The 31-year-old point guard will be formally arraigned in Brooklyn federal court late Monday on federal wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges. He’ll also join five other co-defendants and their lawyers for a pre-trial hearing later in the day on the case.

Rozier previously appeared before a federal judge in Orlando on Oct. 23, when prosecutors first announced the indictment.

At the time, he was released with conditions. One of his lawyers, Jim Trusty, denied the charges, saying the Ohio native was “not a gambler” and “looks forward to winning this fight.”

Prosecutors say Rozier conspired with friends to help them win bets on his performance in a March 2023 game when he played for the Charlotte Hornets.

They say he informed the bettors that he intended to leave the game against the New Orleans Pelicans early with a supposed injury, allowing gamblers to place wagers earning them tens of thousands of dollars.

Rozier played the first nine minutes and 36 seconds of the game before leaving, citing a foot issue. He did not play again that season.

More than 30 people have been arrested in connection with the sprawling federal takedown of illegal gambling operations linked to professional sports, including several Mafia figures.

Rozier was one of three current or former NBA players ensnared in the investigation.

Portland Trail Blazers coach and NBA Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups was among a number charged with participating in a scheme to fix high-stakes, Mafia-backed illegal poker games.

Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones has also been charged in that poker scheme, as well as the separate scheme to help gamblers win bets on NBA games that also implicated Rozier.

Billups and Jones pleaded not guilty during their separate arraignments last month. Both Billups and Rozier have been placed on unpaid leave from their team as their court cases play out.

Rozier has earned about $160 million over a 10-year NBA career.

He had been a first round pick for the Boston Celtics in 2015 after starring at the University of Louisville. Charlotte traded him to the Heat last year.

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Follow Philip Marcelo at https://x.com/philmarcelo

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As the dust has settled on the College Football Playoff race, Texas A&M football has remained firm in the conversation as one of the best teams in America. That sentiment held true for the Aggies early Sunday morning, as head coach Mike Elko’s crew is set to host the Miami Hurricanes.

While separated by about a day’s drive down Interstate 10, the Maroon and White and the Hurricanes are quite familiar with each other in recent years. It was just two seasons ago that now-Houston quarterback Conner Weigman and Co. travelled to Hard Rock Stadium and were defeated 48-33.

Just a year before that, however, Kyle Field was rocking for the Hurricanes’ first game in College Station since 2008, and the hype of the matchup was rewarded with an impressive defensive effort out of the home squad. With that said, let’s flashback to 2022 when the Aggies seized a decisive victory, 17-9.

A&M Weathers the Hurricane

In 2022, then-No. 13 Miami travelled to face No. 24 A&M in a night game that drew one of the highest attendances in Kyle Field history, with 107,245 Aggie fans yelling and rocking the stadium from kickoff until the clock hit triple zeros.

The A&M defense stood tall that night, as Miami fumbled the ball, turned the ball over on downs, and missed two critical field goals. Despite amassing a whopping 27 first downs, the expertise of former defensive coordinator DJ Durkin’s unit kept the Aggies’ boat sailing straight over the Miami hurricane.

Looking for a spark on offense, head coach Jimbo Fisher turned to LSU transfer quarterback Max Johnson to bring a change necessary for a big-time win. Johnson completed just 10 passes to only four different receivers, but that was all the Aggies needed to upset their ACC foes.

The lone receiving touchdown was hauled in by none other than running back De’Von Achane, who, ironically enough, plays professionally with the Dolphins in Miami. Already up 10-3, the Aggies were searching to deliver the final knockout punch to take down the Hurricanes, and Achane did just that.

On second down, Achane took a screen pass through the Hurricane defenders, eluding arm tackle after arm tackle as the future Pro Bowl rusher found his way into the end zone for what was A&M’s last score of the game.

While every game matters in its own right, no bigger game has ever been played at Kyle Field than the one that is coming on Dec. 20. Miami knows it, too, and will be willing to put all its chips down to advance to the next round of the CFP.

Luckily for A&M, it’ll have the 100,000+ home-field advantage.