The NBA betting scandal was being investigated before Donald Trump was president, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t relish the FBI’s findings.
Thursday morning, Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, and former Cleveland Cavaliers player Damon Jones were arrested in separate sports betting probes involving an illegal poker ring and influencing player prop bets. Stephen A. Smith was quick to blame Trump, warning everyone, “he’s coming” as part of the president’s revenge tour.
Rachel Nichols joined Emmanuel Acho’s Speakeasy Thursday night, where she was asked about Trump’s potential involvement. And as the NBA finds itself at the center of a bombshell federal investigation, Nichols noticed the FBI seemed eager to present the findings.
“This investigation started two years ago when Joe Biden was president,” Nichols acknowledged. “You can’t say this investigation was because of Donald Trump.”
“Donald Trump has been very direct and open that he has a lot of contempt for the guys in the NBA. And a lot of the guys in the NBA have been very direct and open that they have a lot of contempt for him,” Nichols continued. “So, the fact that they came out with the director of the FBI, not just the investigators and made a big show of the fact that they were charging NBA players and used very flamboyant language…just as my opinion, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that you have a president who openly said he doesn’t respect or like these players and is making a big show out of charging them.”
The FBI didn’t just announce their findings in this investigation, they turned it into a spectacle. When FBI director Kash Patel announced he would be holding a press conference to announce the high-profile NBA arrests, it seemed like they were looking to make an example of the league. But even if Trump nudged the FBI to hold a briefing where they spewed lame basketball and betting puns, that’s likely where his connection to this investigation that began years ago ends.
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com