Pacers Head Coach Comments on Gambling Indictments
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle called Thursday “a shocking day” after federal gambling indictments were announced against more than 30 people, including Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, and former player Damon Jones.
Carlisle spoke to reporters before the Pacers’ home opener Thursday, a game Indiana lost in double overtime to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Carlisle, who also serves as president of the National Basketball Coaches Association, said he tried reaching out to Billups. “I reached out to Chauncey today to see how he was doing. He did not answer,” he said. “The coaches association — we support all our coaches … I’ll just leave it at that.”
He said the news shows how much the sports world has changed with legalized betting. “This is a very serious situation,” Carlisle said. “The irony is that yesterday our general counsel came down and read us all the regulations on gambling … and warned our coaching staff, our players, our support staff about all the different things.”
Carlisle said he wouldn’t comment on the specifics of the investigation but added, “It’s a shocking day … we’ll see what happens as all the facts come out.”
