Gilbert Arenas spent Thursday leaning into the snitching jokes before getting serious about one person he thinks crossed the line.
The former NBA star showed up to his Gil’s Arena show carrying a brown paper bag labeled “Informant Lunch” hours after Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier were arrested in separate FBI gambling probes. He joked about talking too much and said the Blazers didn’t need their coach anyway. Then he went after Rachel Nichols.
“I’m good for all the trolling, that’s cool. But Rachel Nichols is foul. She used my video, and she actually wrote that I possibly snitched,” Arenas said on his Gil’s Arena show. “I’m gonna troll with the best of them, but to ask that question? First of all, two of them n***** is gambling on the NBA, one is throwing poker games, and robbing his friends. Ain’t got sh*t to do with me.”
Nichols posted on social media on Thursday after news broke that Billups and Rozier had been arrested. She reshared her July 31 post about Arenas being released on bail after his own gambling-related arrest, writing, “I have absolutely no idea whether Gilbert Arenas is involved in the investigation that led today’s FBI arrests, but this from July just resurfaced on my phone.”
That July post included a video of Arenas using the hashtag #SnitchingGilComingSoon after being indicted on federal charges for allegedly renting out his Encino mansion to host illegal poker games. Nichols wrote that Arenas “seems, um, willing to cut a deal” after being released on $50,000 bond.
Nichols has since deleted the quote tweet, while acknowledging that Arenas has “a sense of humor” in a follow-up post.
Despite perpetuating that narrative himself, Arenas doesn’t see it that way.
Arenas pushed back hard against the implication during Thursday’s edition of his show. He made clear his case has nothing to do with what Billups and Rozier are facing. Billups was charged in connection with rigged underground poker games. Rozier allegedly gave inside information to bettors about when he’d leave games early.
Arenas told his co-hosts he’d never cooperate with authorities when organized crime is involved.
“I watch enough movies to know the last group you want to snitch on is the mafia,” Arenas said, per the New York Post. “Listen, I watch Dateline. They still ain’t found people since 1947. I like my YouTubing career.”
Arenas was arrested in July for allegedly running an illegal gambling operation with ties to a suspected Israeli crime figure. He posted bail and immediately joked about cutting a deal. Three months later, three other NBA figures with gambling connections get arrested, and Arenas shows up to his podcast with an “Informant Lunch” bag.
An old video also resurfaced Thursday showing Arenas claiming he, Larry Hughes, and Damon Jones were gambling at LeBron James’ house during the 2006 playoffs between Washington and Cleveland. Jones was arrested on Thursday for allegedly trading inside information about a LeBron injury in 2023.
None of it proves that Arenas cooperated with federal authorities. But the timing and the jokes made people wonder.
What’s clear is he’s leaning into the speculation while drawing a line at being called a snitch. He’ll joke about being an informant and carry around lunch bags with labels on them. But he wants it known that what happened to Billups and Rozier has nothing to do with him or his case, even if he heavily implied it does.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.