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In the wake of his arrest in November as part of a federal gambling investigation, former Miami Heat point guard Terry Rozier will forfeit his $26.6 million salary from the 2025-26 season.
An arbitrator ruled this week that the conditions of his release were in conflict with his contract. Consequently, he will not receive most, if not all of his salary.
The forfeiture is on par or greater than some of the largest fines ever levied against American casinos.
In 2019, Massachusetts gaming regulators fined Wynn Resorts $35 million for failing to properly investigate and act on sexual misconduct allegations against former owner Steve Wynn. Nevada regulators fined the company paid another $20 million fine for the same reason. Additionally, they fined Wynn himself $10 million.
Release Terms Caused Contract Violation
As part of his release, authorities prohibited Rozier from contacting players, coaches, or staff from his former teams. In the eyes of the arbitrator, those conditions violated his contract.
Rozier is now out a hefty sum of money as a federal trial looms in the coming months for charges of sports bribery, honest services wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.
The feds added an additional bribery charge to Rozier’s case. Recently, federal investigators alleged a group of bettors gave Rozier $100,000 for notifying them about his plan to leave a game early in March 2023.
As part of his release, the government put travel restrictions in place for the 10-year NBA veteran.
Rozier worked to change his release conditions, so he could find another team during free agency. Rozier’s attorney, Jim Trusty, asked the feds drop the restriction against contacting the Heat and Hornets. However, they only allowed him to contact the Heat.
“With the NBA’s free agency process officially beginning June 30, maintaining the Hornets on the no-contact list would likely prevent him from having any opportunity to play in the NBA,” Trusty argued.
“Under the current ruling of the arbitrator, an inability to play for or against the Charlotte Hornets would constitute a ‘failure to perform services’ by Mr. Rozier and substantially diminish or eliminate any chance of being contracted by an NBA team.”
Of course, it’s unlikely any NBA team would sign Rozier with the allegations hanging over his head.
Jones Expected To Plead Guilty
Rozier was part of a wide-ranging investigation that allegedly involved providing a group of bettors with inside information and rigging statistics to benefit gamblers.
Authorities also implicated former NBA player and Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach Damon Jones in the scheme. They also arrested Portland Trail Blazers head coach and NBA Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups for his alleged involvement in a high-stakes poker cheating operation that allegedly involved members of New York’s organized crime families.
The FBI claimed Jones was involved in both operations. Rozier and Billups both pleaded not guilty, but Jones is expected to change his plea to guilty, according to reports.
Some Of Largest Casino Fines In History
Beyond the Wynn fines, Nevada regulators handed out other several large fines. However, those were still smaller amounts than what Rozier is giving up.
Caesars Entertainment agreed to pay a $7.8 million settlement with the Nevada Gaming Control Board in 2025 over a money laundering complaint.
Resorts World Las Vegas received an even larger fine of $10.5 million the same year for similar allegations. The property reportedly engaged in unsuitable operations and allowed illegal bookies Mathew Bowyer and Damien LeForbes to wager large sums of money at the property.
In Australia, Sydney’s Star Casino paid a $10 million fine over allegations of money laundering and other financial crimes. The property has struggled for several years. Bally’s has now taken control of Star Entertainment after previously loaning the company $300 million.
While these are sizable fines, Wynn Resorts saw a $130 million forfeiture in 2024 to settle federal criminal allegations. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, investigators alleged the property allowed an unlicensed money transfer company to funnel funds to gamblers at the Las Vegas casino.