Glen 'Big Baby' Davis #0 of the Power shoots a free throw during the BIG3 Playoffs at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, La., on Aug. 25, 2019. (Chris Graythen/BIG3 via Getty Images)
Former NBA player Glen “Big Baby” Davis, best known for winning an NBA championship as a rookie with the 2007-08 Boston Celtics, was sentenced on Thursday to 40 months in prison over a fraud scheme.
The scheme, in which Mr. Davis was one of 18 former NBA players arrested for back in 2021, was related to the league’s healthcare plan.
The players allegedly defrauded the NBA Players’ Health and Welfare Benefit Plan from 2017-20 by submitting false medical claims and then getting reimbursed for them. They used fake invoices that said they had to pay for the phantom procedures out of pocket.
In November 2023, Mr. Davis was convicted on charges of health care fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to make false statements, and conspiracy to commit health care and wire fraud by a New York jury.
Prosecutors said the scheme defrauded the insurance plan for more than $5 million. Mr. Davis, who was a second-round NBA Draft pick after being an All-American at LSU, made over $34 million in earnings during his eight-year NBA career and faced up to 20 years in prison.
“Today’s conviction exemplifies that despite notoriety or success in sports or any other field, no one is exempt from criminal charges if they engage in fraud,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement back in November.
In one instance of the scheme, Mr. Davis claimed to have dental work done in Los Angeles for $27,200, but tracking data from his cell phone showed that he was in Las Vegas at the time and then flew to Paris that same day. In all, Mr. Davis submitted a total of $132,000 worth of claims.
In addition to the jail sentence, Mr. Davis is ordered to pay back $80,000 in restitution and he will be on three years of supervised release. The conditions of his supervised release include mandatory drug treatment and attending a class on financial management.
The alleged ringleader of the scheme was Terrence Williams, who had a four-year NBA career in which he made nearly $7 million. He allegedly received at least $230,000 in kickbacks from other players in on it and helped three co-defendants—including Mr. Davis—obtain fake letters of medical necessity to justify some of the services rendered. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison in August 2023, while Aamir Wahab, a California dentist who helped facilitate the fraud, was sentenced to three years in prison late last year.
Terrence Williams looks on prior to the 2009 NBA Draft at the Wamu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City on June 25, 2009. (Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
Others among the 18 players originally indicted range from journeymen to those with notable careers that the casual NBA fan would recognize. They include former high school standout Sebastian Telfair, Darius Miles, who was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2000 draft, Shannon Brown, who won two titles with the Lakers, and Tony Allen, who won a title alongside Mr. Davis with the Celtics and was a six-time All-Defensive selection with the Grizzlies.
The NBA Players’ Health and Welfare Benefit Plan is a healthcare plan that provides benefits to eligible active and former players of the National Basketball Association. Eligible players’ spouses are also qualified to receive benefits from the plan, and Mr. Allen’s wife, Desiree, was also indicted alongside the 18 NBA players.
Mr. Davis played in the NBA from 2007-15 with the Boston Celtics, Orlando Magic, and Los Angeles Clippers. He was drafted 35th overall by the Seattle SuperSonics in 2007 but never played for the team, as he was part of a trade that sent Ray Allen from Seattle to Boston. Mr. Davis was a bench player on the 2007-08 Celtics team that finished with the league’s best record (66-16) and won a title behind the Big 3 of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Mr. Allen.
Mr. Davis averaged 8.0 points and 4.4 rebounds over his 514-game NBA career. After his NBA career ended in 2015, he played for Ice Cub’s BIG3 in 2018, in which he helped Power win the league championship. His last basketball stint came with the National Basketball League of Canada during the 2018-19 season.
Glen 'Big Baby' Davis #0 of the Power reacts against the Ghost Ballers during week four of the BIG3 three-on-three basketball league at Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, R.I., on July 13, 2019. (Adam Glanzman/BIG3/Getty Images)
He also had several other run-ins with the law outside of this fraud scheme. In February 2018, he was arrested in a Maryland hotel on drug possession and distribution charges after the hotel owner smelled marijuana coming from Mr. Davis’ room. According to WMAR-TV in Baltimore, the police found 126 grams of marijuana and $92,000 in cash in Mr. Davis’ possession, leading to his arrest on seven counts of drug possession and distribution.
Just four months later, Mr. Davis was charged in an unrelated incident for assault outside a Hollywood club. The 6-foot-9, 289-pound Mr. Davis allegedly threw a victim into a wall after a dispute. Mr. Davis was charged with one count of assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury, with the charge including an allegation of causing great bodily injury.
Outside of Mr. Davis and Mr. Williams, Will Bynum, Alan Anderson, and Keyon Dooling have already been sentenced to prison time. Last month, Mr. Bynum received an 18-month jail sentence, while in 2023, Mr. Anderson and Mr. Dooling received sentences of 24 months and 30 months, respectively.
