Ed Davis has signalled his intent to plead guilty in his federal sports betting case, according to a docket entry filed on Friday, 6 November. Davis, 37, first pleaded not guilty to four federal charges, including bribery in sporting contests and wire fraud conspiracy. On Friday, the judge overseeing the case asked a federal magistrate to schedule a hearing for Ed Davis to change his plea. John Adams, one of Davis’s lawyers, told ESPN that he had no further comment beyond the information entered on the docket, and a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York also declined to comment. No date for the plea hearing has been made public yet, and no details of any deal with prosecutors have been disclosed.
Ed Davis is one of six defendants in the case, which alleges that he and Malik Beasley, another former NBA player, worked together as part of a sports gambling scheme that targeted at least four games during the 2023-24 season. Prosecutors allege that Davis loaned money to Beasley after the guard had built up millions of dollars in gambling debt, then organised a scheme for Beasley to change his play so Davis and others could profit from player prop bets. The charges against Davis also include honest services wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy, according to court records reviewed by The Athletic.
Beasley agreed last week to plead guilty in the case as part of a deal with prosecutors, and he is scheduled to formally change his plea at a hearing on 9 December. Paolo Zamorano, who was Davis’s agent, is now the only defendant in the case who has not pleaded guilty or signalled an intent to do so. The planned pleas follow guilty pleas by former NBA players Jontay Porter and Damon Jones in separate gambling-related cases.
Ed Davis played 12 seasons in the NBA after starring at North Carolina, where he was a first-round draft pick. He played for eight teams during his career, and he was known as a rebounder and a role player rather than a scorer. His last NBA season came before the charges were filed, and he has not played in the league since. The case against him does not allege that he played in the games at the centre of the scheme. Instead, prosecutors allege that he helped organise betting around Beasley’s play in four games for the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2023-24 season, when Beasley was with the team.
Ed Davis case and the four charges
The four charges Ed Davis first faced were bribery in sporting contests, wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. Davis first pleaded not guilty to those charges after his indictment in late June. The docket entry on Friday did not say which charges he will admit to, or what sentence prosecutors will seek. A change of plea usually follows talks between a defendant’s lawyers and prosecutors, and the terms are often set out in a plea agreement that is filed with the court. No such agreement for Davis has been made public yet, and his lawyer declined to discuss the case beyond the docket entry.
Ed Davis and the Beasley allegations
Prosecutors allege that Ed Davis worked with Beasley to turn the guard’s on-court play into betting wins. Beasley had built up large gambling debts, and prosecutors allege that Davis loaned him money, then set up a scheme in which Beasley would change his performance in chosen games. The aim, prosecutors allege, was to profit from bets on Beasley’s statistics, known as player prop bets. The scheme is said to have targeted at least four games during the 2023-24 season, when Beasley played for Milwaukee. Beasley has agreed to plead guilty, and his hearing is set for 9 December, which suggests that prosecutors have a deal with him as well.
What happens next in the Ed Davis case
The next step is the scheduling of a hearing for Ed Davis to formally change his plea, and the court has not yet set a date. At that hearing, the judge will ask Davis to confirm his plea, and the terms of any deal with prosecutors may become public.