NBA Gambling Case 2026: Earnest Pleads Guilty, Trial in 2027

Eric Earnest, a key co-conspirator in the inside-information gambling case involving NBA player Terry Rozier, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in federal court on Thursday. ESPN reports that his attorney told reporters afterward that Chauncey Billups "did not at any time provide inside information to Mr. Earnest that he used to place any bets." The remaining defendants, including Rozier and Billups, are scheduled for trial in early 2027.

NBA Gambling Case 2026: What Earnest Admitted

Earnest, 54, told the court that he "agreed with another person to place an illegal bet on an NBA game with a sportsbook" around March 24, 2023, per ESPN. The indictment alleges an unnamed co-conspirator told Earnest that the Portland Trail Blazers would be tanking and that certain Portland players would not play before a March 24, 2023, game against the Chicago Bulls.

Assistant U.S. attorney David Berman said the government would have proved that the co-conspirator was an NBA head coach at the time of the wager and had given inside information to others who bet on an NBA game. Berman did not name the co-conspirator, who was not charged in the case.

The Lines, which previewed the plea on Oct. 11, reports that the Bulls won that game 124-96 and that Jerami Grant and Damian Lillard sat out while not injured, details ESPN's report does not include.

What Earnest's Lawyer Said About Billups

The indictment describes the unnamed co-conspirator as an Oregon resident who was "an NBA player from approximately 1997 through 2014, and an NBA coach since at least 2021." ESPN says those details align with Billups' career. Berman did not name the co-conspirator in court, and ESPN does not report that anyone has been identified in court as that person. Billups was not charged in the inside-information case.

After the hearing, Earnest's attorney, Peter Brill, said: "Our position is that Chauncey Billups did not at any time provide inside information to Mr. Earnest that he used to place any bets." Brill called the allegation that Billups supplied the information a "fundamental disagreement" with the government. Billups' attorney, Marc Mukasey, told ESPN he had no comment on Brill's statement.

Billups is a defendant in a separate case. In a second hearing Thursday, Earnest also pleaded guilty to wire fraud in the case involving allegedly rigged poker games, in which Billups was charged. Billups has pleaded not guilty. Earnest admitted to playing in poker games that "were rigged against certain players" beginning in April 2019, and prosecutor Michael Gibaldi said he was ready to show that Earnest played in games using shuffling machines that could help predict the hands of players at the table.

Two Cases, One Defendant

The structure is easy to lose track of. One federal case concerns inside information on NBA games and involves Rozier. A second concerns allegedly rigged poker games and charges Billups. Earnest pleaded guilty in both on the same day, and ESPN says the remaining defendants in the two cases are scheduled for trial in early 2027.

Sentencing and Trial Calendar

Earnest faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and three years of supervised release on each count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, plus fines of up to $250,000 or double the gross gain or loss. Prosecutors estimated that federal sentencing guidelines put him at 30 to 37 months in the inside-information case and 63 to 78 months in the poker case.

Poker games case sentencing: March 4, 2027

Inside-information case sentencing: April 15

Rozier, Billups and the remaining defendants: trial in early 2027

ESPN did not report a specific trial date. A guilty plea from one defendant is not a finding about anyone else, and Billups has pleaded not guilty.

What This Means for NBA Bettors

The allegation at the center of the inside-information case is about a team's plans: who would play and who would not, ahead of a specific game.

The league has already acted on the betting side. As we covered in our NBA betting restrictions breakdown, the NBA told its sportsbook partners to stop offering same-player under parlays, opening-tip bets and unders on players expected to play fewer than 12 minutes. ESPN tied that memo to federal cases involving Jontay Porter and Rozier.

For bettors, the practical step is unchanged: check official injury reports before you bet and be wary of markets that hinge on a player's status being unconfirmed.

What to Watch Next

Watch for the trial date for Rozier, Billups and the remaining defendants, which ESPN places in early 2027, and for any sentencing filings ahead of Earnest's March 4 and April 15 dates.

StatSniper's Chad AI tracks prop lines and injury news across the NBA slate, and the daily card sits on our AI sports picks hub. Want the reasoning, not just the price? Ask Chad.

FAQ

What did Eric Earnest plead guilty to? Conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in both the inside-information case involving Terry Rozier and a separate case about allegedly rigged poker games. He pleaded guilty in federal court on Thursday, per ESPN.

Was Chauncey Billups charged in the NBA gambling case? Billups was not charged in the inside-information case. He was charged in the separate poker case and has pleaded not guilty. His lawyer told ESPN he had no comment on Earnest's attorney's statement.

When is the Terry Rozier trial? ESPN reports Rozier and the other remaining defendants are scheduled for trial in early 2027. A specific date was not reported.

When will Earnest be sentenced? March 4, 2027 in the poker games case and April 15 in the inside-information case.

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