Terry Rozier, the embattled NBA player accused of participation in a gambling scheme, is now fighting against a ruling forcing him to forfeit his salary. This comes after the NBA claimed that his violation if its rules made him unable to play, resulting in a breach of his contract.
Rozier Was Accused of Participation in Illegal Gambling Scheme
Rozier made headlines after he was accused of alleged participation in a major illegal gambling scheme. He is reported to have, among other things, released insider information to bettors.
In October, the NBA athlete was indicted, but released on a $6 million bond and prohibited to interact with people associated with his former teams, the Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat.
The alleged violations date to his Hornets era, which preceded his stint with the Heat. Rozier ended up missing the 2025-26 season and has since been waived by the Heat.
In addition to facing an uncertain future, Rozier now has to fight for the right to keep his salary.
Rozier’s Salary Was Blocked by Earlier Ruling
Earlier this year, an arbitrator initially sided with Rozier, saying that he was due his salary. However, a May ruling ended up overturning the earlier decision, with the arbitrator deciding to side with the NBA after all.
This effectively allowed the NBA to keep Rozier’s $26.6 million paycheck due to the fact that that he no longer can fulfil his contractual obligation to play.
However, Rozier’s lawyer, Jim Trusty, argued that the forced inactivity is forcing a potential second season of non-participation on Rozier, despite the fact that the athlete is entitled to a presumption of innocence. Trusty argued that the arbitrator’s latest ruling would consider Rozier unable to perform his contractual services. The lawyer emphasized that this would hurt the athlete’s long-term career since it would minimize his chances of being contracted by another team in the future.
While Rozier was prohibited from signing with the Hornets, an earlier ruling allowed him to resume contract with the Heat, or secure one with a new team.