Report: 1981-82 Knicks Fixed Games


The ’81-82 Knicks went 33-49 and finished 10th in the East. According to an FBI report, the team was just fine with losing more often than they won. Per the New York Post:Coked-up Knicks players fixed games as a favor to their drug dealer — who bet big bucks against the anemic New York squad, FBI informants claimed during the 1981-82 season. The feds probed whether three Knicks, reportedly ‘heavy users of cocaine,’ and their supplier, ‘one of the largest dealers on the East Coast,’ shaved points, according to FBI documents cited in Brian Tuohy’s book, ‘Larceny Games: Sports Gambling, Game Fixing and the FBI.’ The dealer was a degenerate gambler who usually bet $300 a game, informants told investigators, but in January 1982 he began laying $10,000 wagers on Knicks’ opponents — and winning them. By March 25, the coke dealer had won six of his seven five-figure bets against the Knicks — while continuing to make his normal $300 wagers on other NBA games. ‘Over . . . the last two months, all three [players] have given . . . tips on when to bet the Knicks to lose. This has occurred seven times and six of the tips were good,’ according to FBI files citing two unnamed sources.’ At the same time, FBI moles began to suspect the Knick trio were ‘betting against themselves.’”