Timothy McCormack received a two-year prison sentence Wednesday as he became the first defendant to be sentenced for his role in the gambling scandal involving NBA players Terry Rozier and Jontay Porter.
Timothy McCormack Defrauded Sportsbooks
According to ESPN, Brooklyn Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall delivered the sentence, which falls below the four-year term that the government expected. The defense also pushed for a court ruling without prison time.
McCormack, 38, defrauded sports betting platforms by using nonpublic information to place wagers tied to the performance of NBA players who allegedly participated in the scheme.
“I’ve struggled with a gambling addiction for more than half my life,” McCormack said at his sentencing. “I’ve made many mistakes in my life, and the worst has been putting gambling first and my own family second.
“No amount of money is worth not being able to wake up to my child’s smile.”
In the betting scheme, the conspirators would be given money to bet on the performance of individual players, known as prop bets. Each participant would receive a cut of the collected profits. McCormack’s cut was 4%.
McCormack was found to have placed a bet on a Charlotte Hornets game in March 2023.
Rozier told a friend, Deniro Laster, he would leave the game early so that he and others could win their wagers on his individual statistics.
Federal prosecutors allege that Laster sold the confidential information to bettors for about $100,000. Rozier played just over nine minutes before leaving the Hornets game due to a foot injury.
McCormack Bet On Another NBA Game
McCormack also joined three of his co-conspirators in Atlantic City to bet on one of Porter’s games on March 20, 2024, wagering more than $12,600, and winning nearly $57,000.
His cut of the pot totaled roughly $44,000.
“He has an addiction,” DeArcy Hall said before handing down the sentence. “I don’t believe the conduct Mr. McCormack engaged in defines him. … There is no question that this is a serious crime.
“It is about sports generally, what do sports mean to this country? They are supposed to be the best of themselves, and we all root for these teams. This undermines that.”
McCormack is scheduled to start his sentence April 20.
Rozier, who is on unpaid leave from the Miami Heat, pleaded not guilty in December to wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges.
Meanwhile, Porter pleaded guilty to a federal conspiracy charge in July 2024.
The NBA banned Porter for life after he had disclosed confidential information to bettors, limited his participation in at least one game while he was with Toronto, and bet on NBA games while playing in the G League.
