Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier — accused of gambling conspiracy — must be paid his full $26.6 million salary this season after an arbitrator ruled that the NBA cannot put him on unpaid leave, according to his attorney.
The NBA placed Rozier on unpaid leave after he was federally indicted in October in an alleged sports gambling scheme. The arbitrator's decision came Monday, Rozier's attorney said.
"Terry won under principles of contract law and the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the league and the players, but the bigger principle at issue is the presumption of innocence," attorney Jim Trusty told NBC News in a statement Tuesday. “The arbitration ruling reminds the NBA that they can’t ignore that important concept just because it’s a high-profile case.”
The Miami Heat declined to comment Tuesday night. The NBA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Rozier has pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Federal prosecutors allege he faked a foot injury at a March 2023 game, when he was playing for the Charlotte Hornets.
Before the game against the New Orleans Pelicans, Rozier told a friend that he was going to “prematurely remove himself from the game in the first quarter” because of a supposed injury and would not return to play further, according to the federal indictment.
Prosecutors claim the friend sold the information to other co-conspirators to “place fraudulent wagers based on the non-public information.”
Rozier pleaded not guilty in December and filed a motion to dismiss the charges. The judge has not yet ruled on the request.
A spokesperson for the National Basketball Players Association, which filed the grievance on behalf of Rozier, also expressed satisfaction at the arbitrator's decision about his salary this season.
“We are pleased with the arbitrator’s ruling and remain committed to ensuring Terry’s due process rights are protected and that he is afforded the presumption of innocence throughout this process," the spokesperson said in a statement.
