NEW YORK (AP) — Eighteen former NBA players have been charged with defrauding the league’s health and welfare benefit plan out of about $4 million, according to an indictment Thursday in New York.
What You Need To Know
- Federal authorities say 18 former NBA players have been arrested on charges alleging they defrauded the league’s health and welfare benefit plan out of about $4 million
- A news conference was scheduled for Thursday to announce the charges that were brought in an indictment in Manhattan federal court
- The indictment said the ex-players and one of their spouses engaged in a widespread scheme to defraud the plan by submitting false and fraudulent claims for reimbursement of medical and dental expenses that were never incurred
Federal prosecutors are holding a news conference to describe the case that was brought in Manhattan federal court. By late morning, 16 of the defendants were in custody, authorities said.
According to the indictment, the ex-players engaged in a widespread scheme to defraud the plan by submitting false and fraudulent claims to get reimbursed for medical and dental expenses that were never actually incurred.
The 18 players were among 19 individuals charged in the indictment. It said that the scheme was carried out from at least 2017 to 2020, when the plan received false claims totaling about $3.9 million. Of that, the defendants received about $2.5 million in fraudulent proceeds.
A request for comment to the league wasn’t immediately returned.
Among those charged was Anthony Allen, a six-time All-Defensive team selection and a member of the 2008 champion Boston Celtics. His wife was also indicted. For the most part, though, the ex-players charged had journeyman careers playing for several different teams and never reached anywhere close to the enormous stardom or salary that top players command.
Another former player charged in the scheme was Sebastian Telfair, a one-time high school star in New York who backed out of a commitment with Louisville to make the jump straight to the pros, though his NBA career with eight franchises never brought the stardom some had expected.
Those charged also included four NBA champions. Glen Davis, along with Allen, was part of that 2008 title team in Boston. Davis also played for the Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Clippers.
Shannon Brown won two championships with the Los Angeles Lakers, and Melvin Ely won a title with San Antonio in 2007.
Among others who were charged, Anthony Wroten, Ruben Patterson and Darius Miles were the only players who averaged double figures for their NBA career.
Wroten averaged 11.1 points in 145 career games. Patterson averaged 10.7 points per game with six different teams. Miles, the No. 3 pick in the 2000 draft by the Clippers, averaged 10.1 points per game and played with four different franchises.
Also charged are Alan Anderson, Will Bynum, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Jamario Moon, Milt Palacio, Eddie Robinson, Greg Smith, C.J. Watson, Antoine Wright and Terrence Williams, who starred at Louisville before spending four years in the NBA.
