An arbitration has ruled that the Miami Heat will have to pay the player’s salary, initially suspended after the guard’s federal indictment in the betting scandal
Terry Rozier, Miami Heat guard, will receive a salary of 26.6 million dollars (approximately 22.5 million euros) for this season. The salary was suspended by the NBA after the player’s arrest and federal indictment as part of a gambling investigation. The NBPA (National Basketball Player Association, the players’ union) appealed and an arbitration established that his situation does not fall within the cases foreseen by the collective agreement for unpaid leave. “Terry won based on the principles of contract law and the collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players, but the most important principle at play is the presumption of innocence,” said Jim Trusty, Rozier’s lawyer. “This decision reminds the NBA that it cannot ignore a fundamental concept just because it is a high-profile case.”
