Two former NBA stars were convicted in a massive multi-million dollar insurance fraud scheme that targeted the league’s player healthcare plan.
NEW: A jury has convicted former NBA players Glen Davis and William Bynum after they were charged with engaging in a criminal scheme to defraud the NBA Players’ Health and Benefit Welfare plan.
U.S. Attorney Damien Williams says the pair’s fraud netted them over $5 million.
— Tom Winter (@Tom_Winter) November 15, 2023
A Manhattan jury convicted former ball players Glen “Big Baby” Davis and Will Bynum in a fraud scheme that prosecutors claim scammed fellow NBA players and their families out of over $5 million, per ESPN.
The pair were just two of the over 20 arrested in the sprawling scheme, including alleged ringleader Terrence Williams, another former NBA star who was sentenced to 10 years in prison in August.
The illicit scheme involved submitting fake medical and dental claims to the NBA Players’ Health and Benefit Welfare plan, according to ESPN.
“Their conduct was otherwise a typical fraudulent scheme designed to defraud the NBA’s health care plan and net the defendants over $5 million in illicit profits,” a statement from U.S. attorneys in the Southern District of New York said. (RELATED: Troubled NBA Star Gets Traded And Immediately Cut. Can These Guys Please Stop Committing Crimes?)
“Today’s conviction” the statement continued “exemplifies that despite notoriety or success in sports or any other field, no one is exempt from criminal charges if they engage in fraud.”
Bynum and Davis, while never quite reaching superstar status, were mainstays in league rotations for over a decade. Bynum was a solid role player who enjoyed some statistical success, even managing to average double digits in the points per game statistic with the Detroit Pistons during the 2009/2010 season. His estimated career earnings reportedly exceeded $16 million according to Spotrac.com
Big Baby enjoyed even more sustained success than Bynum, managing to pull in over $33 million, per Spotrac, in his career across stints with the Los Angeles Clippers, Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics, even reaching the highest pinnacle after winning the NBA Championship with Boston in 2008.
Nearly $50 million in combined salary over their careers and these two still decided to steal from their peers. Pathetic.