The NBA has banned Jontay Porter of the Toronto Raptors for life after an investigation revealed that he shared private information with sports betters to the point of wagering against his own team.
The NBA enacted its investigation into Porter’s actions after it learned from licensed betting organizations and an organization that monitors legal betting markers about “unusual gambling patterns surrounding Porter’s performance in a game on March 20 against Sacramento,” reported the Associated Press.
“The league determined that Porter gave a bettor information about his own health status before that game and said that another individual — known to be an NBA bettor — placed an $80,000 bet that Porter would not hit the numbers set for him in parlays through an online sports book. That bet would have won $1.1 million,” it noted.
“Porter took himself out of that game after less than three minutes, claiming illness, none of his stats meeting the totals set in the parlay. The $80,000 bet was frozen and not paid out, the league said, and the NBA started an investigation not long afterward,” it added.
Jontay Porter (34) of the Toronto Raptors pushes the ball in transition ahead of Nikola Jokic (15) of the Denver Nuggets during the first quarter at Ball Arena in Denver on Monday, March 11, 2024. (Aaron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
The NBA has strict rules for players engaged in sports betting, and Porter was found to have been in violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. “Any Player who, directly or indirectly, wagers money or anything of value on any game or event in the Association or in the NBA G League shall, on being charged with such wagering, be given an opportunity to answer such charges after due notice, and the decision of the Commissioner shall be final, binding, and conclusive and unappealable,” the agreement states.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said on Wednesday that Porter’s actions were “blatant” and warranted a ban.
“There is nothing more important than protecting the integrity of NBA competition for our fans, our teams, and everyone associated with our sport, which is why Jontay Porter’s blatant violations of our gaming rules are being met with the most severe punishment,” Silver said.
Porter is the second person banned from the NBA under Silver’s reign, with the first being Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling in 2014.
Raptors President Masai Ujiri expressed surprise over the ban.
“You don’t want this for the kid, you don’t want this for our team, and we don’t want this for our league, that’s for sure,” said Ujiri. “My first reaction is obviously surprise because none of us, I don’t think anybody, saw this coming.”
Jontay Porter #34 of the Toronto Raptors grabs a rebound during the game against the Detroit Pistons on March 13, 2024, at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan. (Brian Sevald/NBAE via Getty Images)
The Raptors later said they were “fully supportive of the league’s decision to ban Jontay Porter from the NBA and are grateful for the swift resolution to this investigation. We will continue to cooperate with all ongoing inquiries.”
The investigation also showed that Porter bet on 13 games using someone else’s betting account that ranged from $15 to $22,000. None of those were games that Porter played, said the NBA, but three of the wagers were multi-game parlays that included one bet in which Porter wagered for his team to lose.
“While legal sports betting creates transparency that helps identify suspicious or abnormal activity, this matter also raises important issues about the sufficiency of the regulatory framework currently in place, including the types of bets offered on our games and players,” Silver said. “Working closely with all relevant stakeholders across the industry, we will continue to work diligently to safeguard our league and game.”
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