The opening days of the NBA season have been dominated by gambling talk, and not the kind of that the league and its broadcast partners envisioned. Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, Heat guard Terry Rozier and retired player Damon Jones were all arrested the morning after opening night and indicted as part of a mob-linked gambling investigation.
Details are slowing coming out, including the names of some other people who weren't necessarily involved in the illegal poker game at the center of this story, but were there in different capacities. According to Pablo Torre, two other retired NBA players at least stopped by the rigged card game: Kevin Garnett and Ty Lue.
According to Torre's reporting, Garnett thought he was going to an "afterparty" in Los Angeles and left without playing. Garnett has not been contacted by authorities.
🚨 UPDATE: A number of former pro athletes played at private poker games organized by those indicted by the DOJ in “Operation Royal Flush.”
— Pablo Torre 👀 (@PabloTorre) October 24, 2025
One of them — according to multiple sources with direct knowledge of a game that took place in 2019 — was Kevin Garnett. @pablofindsout https://t.co/9UEijIez8R
The other retired NBA player to stop by one of the games is reportedly Ty Lue, the current coach of the Clippers. According to Torre, Lue did play, but was at a separate table from Billups.
🚨➕ Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue was also in attendance at the allegedly rigged April 2019 poker game in Las Vegas, sources with direct knowledge tell @pablofindsout.
— Pablo Torre 👀 (@PabloTorre) October 25, 2025
But sources say Lue did not play at the same table as his good friend, Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups.
While neither ex-player is thought to be involved in any way, this does help explain why these games would have been so attractive to potential players. Billups wasn't the only former player or even active NBA coach who you might run into during one of these card games.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Pablo Torre Reveals Two More Retired NBA Players Seen at Alleged Rigged Poker Game.
