Many players have discussed how sports betting impacts their daily lives and how management should handle it. To counter this, the NBA has started investigations to prevent it from going any further, as it is against the policy.
Considering recent reports, the NBA is currently investigating forward Jontay Porter of the Toronto Raptors following a few instances of betting over the past months, to which his elder brother, Michael Portor Jr., breaks his silence.
Michael Porter Jr speaks on Jontay Porter’s gambling investigation
On Monday, the league announced the start of an open investigation into Jontay Porter after multiple allegations of sports betting. His brother, Michael Porter Jr., was asked about his brother’s involvement in the scenario following the Denver Nuggets’ loss to the Phoenix Suns, to which he answered, backing up his brother and saying that he would never do anything to jeopardize his basketball career.
Michael Portor Jr. said, “I’ve known my brother my whole life. I know what type of dude he is and I know he’s excited to play basketball, and I highly doubt he would do anything to put that in jeopardy.”
Michael Porter Jr. further adds, “You know, the love of money is the root of all evil. So, I think that even though it is a thing, we as players just have to accept that. We get paid a lot of money to play this game and I know these people, these fans, they want to make some money, as well.”
NBA’s Jontay Porter investigation for betting issues explained
According to ESPN, Jontay Porter’s involvement dates back to two specific games: January 26th against the Clippers and March 20th against the Sacramento Kings. On those nights, Porter’s props that he was wearing were trending on betting sites on DraftKings, and the winners were those who bet on Porter’s unders, betting on the fact that he would score fewer points, record fewer assists, and grab fewer rebounds from the numbers that the betters had already set.
Another similarity between both nights was the fact that Porter left the game early, playing 4 minutes on January 26th and leaving with an apparent eye injury, while he left the game on March 20th after playing just 3 minutes due to illness.
These instances don’t strike as just coincidences to the league management, and hence the investigation is taking place. Porter has played a total of 26 games this season, in which he is averaging 4.4 ppg, 3.2 boards and 3.2 minutes of action.
