Hornets scrub ‘Sports Betting’ theme night vs. Heat amid Terry Rozier’s link to federal gambling probe

The Charlotte Hornets have removed a sports betting theme night from their 2025-26 season promotional calendar, originally scheduled for March 17 vs. the Miami Heat. That game is slated to feature former player Terry Rozier, now with the Heat, in a visit to the Spectrum Center. 

The Hornets’ more innocuous themes included Kids Day, Breast Cancer Awareness, Hoops for Troops and others. Rozier, however, is mentioned in a federal sports betting probe stemming from a 2023 game when he was a member of the Hornets. Coincidentally, March 17 is also Rozier’s birthday. 

Per Ira Winderman of the Orlando Sun-Sentinel, the Hornets now say the “Sports Betting” theme night is no longer happening on that date.

Rozier, a member of the Hornets from 2019 to 2024, is linked to unusual gambling patterns in the lead-up to a March 2023 game vs. the Pelicans in which he only played the first nine minutes and 36 seconds before leaving with a foot injury. According to the Wall Street Journal, authorities believe some of the people involved in the Jontay Porter betting scandal may have had inside information that compelled them to bet against Rozier.

While authorities are investigating whether Rozier manipulated his own performance, he has not been charged or directly accused of wrongdoing.