The inside story of Jones’ arrest: He used inside information about James’ injury to bet on sports. The latter was used but didn’t know it.

On October 24, the new NBA regular season has begun in full swing. Former NBA player Damon Jones has been arrested by the FBI in Las Vegas on gambling charges. At present, the US media has disclosed the details of this matter. He used James' injury to gamble, but James himself did not know it.

The FBI disclosed the details at a press conference. They mentioned that in the game between the Bucks and the Lakers on February 9, 2023, local time, Lakers player James did not play. He was confirmed to miss that game due to ankle soreness. The indictment alleges that James' friend Damon Jones, who is not an official employee of the Lakers, sold or attempted to profit from non-public information so that others, including alleged co-conspirators Eric Earnest and Marves Fairley, could place bets on which players would not play or whether they would leave early.

Prior to the Lakers-Bucks game on February 9, 2023, Jones sent a text message to an unnamed co-conspirator who subsequently learned that a player would be absent and suggested that they bet on the Bucks, who had not yet appeared on the injury report. In the end, the Lakers lost the game 106-115, and James was indeed absent from the game.

In addition, Jones also provided information about the Lakers in the 2023-24 season, including the situation of "Player 4 (the Department of Justice said it was one of the Lakers' best players this season)". However, James subsequently missed the Lakers' next two games and did not return until February 15, 2023, the Lakers' last game before the All-Star Weekend.

Damon Jones once served as James' assistant coach and personal shooting coach, but was not an employee of the Lakers at the time. Jones was not an official employee of the Lakers during the 22-23 season, but due to his long-term participation in James' pre-game training, he was allowed to have limited access to team facilities. According to reporter Dan Woike, sources told "The Athletic" that James was not aware that Jones had sold or leaked information about his medical condition.

What do you think of the actions of Jones, Rozier, Billups and others? Welcome to give your opinions in the comment area.