Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier’s arrests by the FBI on Thursday have opened Pandora’s Box. Their supposed connection with the mafia in illegal poker games, betting, and gambling has thrown the NBA world into a frenzy. Indeed, the news came as a shock to everyone. However, professional poker player Matt Berkley forewarned on the Only Friends podcast in 2023 that Billups’ game was “not on the up and up.” Meanwhile, NBA legend Kevin Garnett’s name finds its way into this murky scandal.

Appearing on the Pat McAfee show, Berkley revealed some fine details about these rigged games. “I don’t want to lay it on the people who got taken for a ride in these games and make it seem like it was so obvious. They should have known. But it is one of those things where, when you, as a professional, don’t really offer too much to a high-profile game. Like this, that’s being run around celebrities, you get the invite. Your radar should kind of go up,” he said.

“And this particular game was happening both in Los Angeles and in Las Vegas. I had gotten multiple invites, as well as a lot of friends who don’t really have access to these sorts of private games. And it just seemed quite suspicious to me. So I was lucky enough to pass. I had a lot of friends who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in these games. Just for the opportunity to play with a few celebrities. But yeah, once you get outside of the casino, the rules get bent quite a bit.”

Simply put, Matt Berkey revealed how exclusive poker circles can lure professionals into risky traps. He explained that when lesser-known pros receive sudden invites to celebrity-heavy tables in Los Angeles or Las Vegas, suspicion should strike immediately. Many players ignored the warning signs and paid the price, losing fortunes for fame. Berkey avoided the setup entirely, stressing that outside regulated casinos, fair play becomes dangerously flexible.

Meanwhile, Berkey also exposed how a high-stakes poker setup centered around Chauncey Billups fooled even seasoned pros in 2023. He recalled hearing claims that the game was completely fair, yet his instincts warned otherwise. His caution proved right. Friends who played told him how amateurs made impossible wins with perfect cards every time. The professionals, unaware of the manipulation, kept losing big while believing they faced luck, not deception.

Berkey later broke down the silence surrounding poker’s darker side. He explained that calling out powerful names like Billups carries real consequences, as influence often shields wrongdoing. Only the pros kept losing, and the game absolutely filleted them, Berkey said. And now, as the NBA gambling scandal goes deeper into the trench with mafia connections, and more, one of the NBA’s dearest legends, Kevin Garnett, finds himself at the center. What’s going on?

The Boston Celtics legend, Kevin Garnett’s name comes up in gambling drama

On October 24, journalist Pablo Torre reported that several former professional athletes took part in secret poker circles connected to Chauncey Billups’ arrest. According to Torre’s sources, one such game from 2019 involved former NBA star Kevin Garnett, who allegedly joined these exclusive sessions. Details remain limited, yet Torre’s report has intensified the spotlight on the FBI’s widening gambling investigation across the sports world.

It remains unclear what role Kevin Garnett may have played in the NBA gambling scandal. Sources allege he participated in an illegal 2019 poker game, but details are scarce. It is unknown whether Garnett manipulated outcomes like Billups or simply played in the scheme. Authorities have not named Garnett in the indictment, accused him of any wrongdoing, or arrested him, leaving his involvement uncertain.

The NBA’s glitzy veneer is cracking, and the cards are spilling secrets. Chauncey Billups’ arrest has dragged poker’s dark side into the spotlight, while Kevin Garnett’s name now flirts with mystery and suspicion. Suddenly, Matt Berkey’s warnings resonate louder than ever, revealing how even the sharpest pros fall victim. The FBI is digging deeper, blurring the line between celebrity glamour and deception.