Meyer Lansky II explained mob ties to athletes during NBA arrests
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Two former NBA players became coachesOne of them, a Hall of Famer, was arrested Thursday for alleged involvement in a poker scheme that also listed members of the La Cosa Nostra crime family as defendants.
Chauncey Billups and Damon Jones, the latter of whom is also a defendant Sports betting case along with Terry Rozier, charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
The two are accused of knowingly participating in daring poker games, dubbed “face cards,” as members of what the Justice Department called “fraud syndicates,” and receiving a portion of the criminal proceeds in exchange for their participation in the scheme.
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Chauncey Billups and Damon Jones were arrested Thursday as part of an illegal poker scheme. (Vincent Carchietta/Imagine Images; Illustrated by Bill Frakes/Sports Getty Images)
“Billups and Jones, in particular… used their status as former professional athletes to lure victims to the game,” the DOJ said.
According to the Justice Department, the scheme cost victims at least $7.15 million as of April 2019.
With a successful NBA career, both playing and on the sideline, one might wonder why he was allegedly wrapped up in such schemes.
“Well, they’re risk takers. Players like that, they’ve got a lot of adrenaline,” the famous mobster’s grandson Meyer Lansky II speculated in a recent interview with Fox News Digital. “They feel that not only can they be paid millions by the team, but they can also earn more from their gambling. Or they are addicted to gambling. There are so many people. They just want to join in. Maybe they like the affiliation with those people or they are behind the gambling setups and situations.”
Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups watches from the sidelines during the first half against the San Antonio Spurs at Moda Center on April 6, 2025 in Portland, Oregon. (Soobum Im/Imagn Images)
Lansky II added that there is a potential sense of power from the athletes themselves.
“I think someone who gets paid extraordinary money, and has a lot of fans behind them, yeah, they can get to the point where they’re just like, ‘Nothing can happen to me. Why shouldn’t I do this?’ I think with any background, not just sports. That is a powerful thing. Money and power and fame, they sometimes take over,” he said.
As for the mafiaAccording to Lansky II, “Sports were always a big deal.”
“It was pretty easy to fix. It’s always been worth it…” he said. “Yeah, I think it’s a lot easier to get into. You can do it because, if you’re in a casino, you have surveillance and people watching, and it’s a lot more risky than sports betting.”
With gambling legalized across the country, it has become very easy for players to indulge in harming the integrity of the game. However, Lansky II believes that illegal relationships and schemes will always arise for a number of reasons.
Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups speaks with Mark O. after his arrest hearing on federal gambling charges on October 23, 2025 in Portland, Oregon, US. Hatfield walks out of the US courthouse. (John Rudoff/Reuters)
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“Protection – you don’t have to bring money up front, you often put it with a bookie. They’ll find you if you don’t pay, but you know, reasons like that, they have great control and great power. They have different ways of doing things with somebody. When they talk maybe they’re influential themselves. a There is a connection with the sports mafia and famous people and sports people, they sometimes like that connection. It gives them something. It’s a strong presence in our society, so that’s a reason. They also believe in him.”
Lansky II will release “The Lansky Legacy” on Tuesday, a book he co-authored that tells the “truth” about his grandfather and dispels “many misconceptions” about him.
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