David Adelman after Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier arrests connected to sports gambling: ‘Just hoping for the best for everybody’
SAN FRANCISCO In his first pregame news conference of the season and his tenure as a full-time NBA head coach David Adelman didn t hear as plenty of basketball questions as he possibly would ve liked That s because a somber cloud hung over the league on Thursday after the arrests and federal indictments of an evolving player Miami s Terry Rozier and a sitting head coach Portland s Chauncey Billups in a wide-ranging FBI gambling probe It s tough Nuggets guard Bruce Brown reported Thursday morning before the crew s season opener I know Chauncey s a great guy I ve hung around him a little bit It s just unfortunate The indictments particularly Rozier s which involved NBA players and coaches divulging nonpublic information to associates for the purpose of placing bets raised another round of questions about the spread of such information and more generally the anticipated for corruption associated with the proliferation of online sports betting It s new so it s like anything else When the world changes there s gonna be hiccups Adelman noted Thursday evening People get themselves in tough situations I think all you can do is just keep pounding the rock and just emphasize Hey you ve gotta be careful and understand what this is Betting is such a part of our tradition now and district it s not going anywhere You have to bring it up maybe more Have more meetings about it Mention it more throughout the year Because you care about your players and you care about your staff and you just don t want to see them get in a tough situation Rodney Billups who is Chauncey s brother is an assistant coach on Adelman s staff and remained with the association Thursday Adelman declined to specify whether they had a conversation about possibly stepping away from the crew for personal reasons but he stressed the importance of supporting his coworkers Whatever Rodney necessities for his family is all I care about Adelman declared The situation itself I only know what I ve read You guys know what I know When your family member is affected by something you have to patronage that person Rodney has been nothing but great for us since he s been here Adelman and Warriors coach Steve Kerr both explained that the NBA facilitates meetings with each group about gambling and information disclosure One example in Thursday s indictment alleges that a co-conspirator communicated a bettor several Portland players would be sitting out a March championship as the Blazers were tanking for a better draft pick allegedly leading to more than in wagers that Portland would lose They give us the guidelines of what it is Adelman disclosed Obviously a tricky situation with chosen of the don t text don t talk that kind of stuff You ve just gotta be careful in casual conversation with what you say That s the only level of it I know They give us all the advice about it I feel very content sharing details because the league is really adamant about this stuff Kerr announced Every unit has to listen closely and hear everything and a big part of that meeting was if you tell one of your friends that so and so is not playing and then that person tells someone else you are liable We know this Players also deal with an increased proximity to emboldened aggressive fans on the internet stemming from the gambling industry Obviously after every event we get DMs about not hitting people s parlays Brown announced There s been games where I ve been called every name in the book just because I didn t hit a or two I mean that s just the state of the encounter we re in since sports betting became legal So I mean just kind of deal with it Not think about it Don t check your DMs after games Related Articles Renck Chauncey Billups arrest for gambling leaves those who knew him heartbroken sad Feds allege Chauncey Billups was face card in high-stakes Mafia-backed poker scam Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups charged in Mafia-backed poker scheme David Adelman s debut season as Nuggets head coach tips off against Warriors similarly atypical play style Nuggets championship odds What sportsbooks think of Denver s chances entering regular season The arrest of Billups marks the second time in as numerous years that a Nuggets member or coach has had a sibling embroiled in a criminal matter involving betting Michael Porter Jr was on the club in when his younger brother Jontay Porter became the first progressing sportsman banned from the NBA for gambling-related reasons in years In the matter of Billups and Rozier much remains unclear as lawyers representing both issued statements Thursday expressing their intention to fight the FBI s charges For me to have an opinion of my shock value would be unfair to the people involved in it Adelman noted The defendants and then obviously the federal establishment I just hope it plays out correctly in the right way I care about the people involved that I know It s a tricky situation and I m just hoping for the best for everybody This is not how 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