Adam Silver’s NBA was barely recovering from the Kawhi Leonard controversy, but it was hit with another shocker. Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, and former Cavaliers coach Damon Jones have reportedly been arrested by the FBI on separate illegal gambling charges. And just when fans thought the league’s integrity couldn’t take another hit, an FBI agent has allegedly dropped even more explosive news on the unfolding situation.

In a recent interview with the PDB podcast’s host, Patrick Bet-David, former NBA referee Tim Donaghy, who admitted to betting on games during his time in the league and was sentenced for doing so, revealed something unheard of. “I just received a text message from one of the FBI agents that worked my case, and he basically said that they’re not going to be able to cover this up like they covered up mine,” he said. Donaghy went on to further move the curtain from what happened during the time he was acquitted.

“I think David Stern was able to put a lid on it and paint me as one bad apple, the only guy involved, and then just move on from it,” he said, recalling how the controversy was handled. “The FBI said there were six or seven other people they wanted to indict, and this got shut down from the highest level.” He went on to add that powerful figures may have influenced the outcome.

“Later, I found out that a guy by the name of Greg Andres, who was the head of the Eastern District of New York, took a job at a law firm and suddenly got all the outside legal counsel work for the NBA. So, it was a situation where David Stern really ran that whole investigation, and it got shut down by the high-level people when it came to others being involved,” he further stated.

If true, this could be a major development in the betting scandal currently brewing within the league. Tim Donaghy claiming an NBA commissioner covered up the issue is nothing short of robbing fans of their bare minimum expectation to keep the game clean and fair. And now, with the recent string of arrests and the FBI agent’s alleged message to Donaghy, the cases involving Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier, and others could soon become a serious headache for Adam Silver and his team.

With a bunch of controversies piled in the last couple of months, Silver might not walk that way if he has nothing to do with it. Also, the league has already taken action against the Portland head coach and the Miami point guard by suspending them for an indefinite time. But if we were to go by Tim Donaghy’s words, this would require much stricter action than just suspensions.

But again, Donaghy has a history of making bold claims without much proof to back them, so we should be taking his statement with a pinch of salt. Nonetheless, by the looks of it, this matter is far from over, and we will be learning a lot more about it in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, Tim Donaghy had more to say about this entire situation.

Tim Donaghy warns the NBA betting scandal could be just the beginning

Sports betting has become a huge dilemma for not just the NBA but almost every sport worldwide, and if there’s anyone who knows a thing or two about the same, it’s Tim Donaghy. The former NBA official has already spent a year in jail for fixing games, and he had a lot to say about the newest scandal involving several individuals and the alleged text from the FBI agent was just one of the many things Donaghy had to say about the situation. The former NBA referee thinks that this new revelation is just the tip of the iceberg.

“I think this is just the tip of the iceberg, like you said earlier,” Donaghy told Chris Cuomo on his show “Cuomo” on The Hill’s sister network NewsNation. “I think maybe you’re going to see a bigger scandal coming out of the college level because you have these young athletes that aren’t going to make it to the next level. Somebody’s going to offer them money to maybe fix a game.” He pointed out that these athletes need to take the money to support their families.

Even if there’s an argument that NIL deals are in place and college players are earning fair wages, and of course, the NBA stars make a fortune, we’ve got to understand that not everyone is making life-changing money. And if there aren’t any proper checks, these young teens are a perfect bait for the bigger minds. Now, will this prompt Adam Silver and the league to make some changes and implement stricter rules that will be something we all will have to wait and watch?