Adam Silver Makes First Public Comments After Gambling-Scandal Arrests

The commissioner spoke during the NBA's debut Amazon Prime broadcast.

The NBA and Commissioner Adam Silver are under new scrutiny amid a wide-ranging federal gambling probe. / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

When federal agents arrested multiple NBA figures Thursday amid a wide-ranging probe into allegations of illegal gambling, league commissioner Adam Silver immediately came under scrutiny—with observers comparing and contrasting his approach to gambling with that of his predecessor, David Stern.

On Friday, during the Celtics' game against the Knicks—a game that was supposed to celebrate a new era of basketball on Amazon Prime—Silver faced questions from Amazon's Cassidy Hubbarth.

"My initial reaction was I was deeply disturbed," Silver told Hubbarth via Tim Bontemps of ESPN. "There's nothing more important to the league and its fans than the integrity of the competition. And so I had a pit in my stomach. It was very upsetting."

Silver specifically elaborated on why the NBA cleared then-Hornets guard Terry Rozier after he allegedly removed himself from a 2023 game in order to win gamblers money on his statistics.

Federal agents arrested Rozier on money laundering and wire fraud charges Thursday, levying similar charges toward Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups.

"We... looked into that situation and were very transparent about it. And while there was that aberrational betting, we, frankly, couldn't find anything," Silver said. "Two and a half years later, he still hasn't been convicted of anything, in fairness to Terry. Obviously it doesn't look good, but he's been put on administrative leave, and so it is a balance here between protecting people's rights and investigating."

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