The NBA on Wednesday banned Jontay Porter (R, with his brother Michael Porter Jr. during a 2018 SEC Tournament game in St. Louis) for life for gambling violations, according to an NBA statement. File Photo by BIll Greenblatt/UPI |
License PhotoApril 17 (UPI) — The NBA Wednesday banned Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter for violating league gambling rules.
The NBA said in a statement on X, “The league’s investigation found that prior to the Raptor’s March 20 game, Porter disclosed confidential information about his own health status to an individual he knew to be an NBA bettor. Another individual with whom Porter associated and knew to be an NBA bettor subsequently placed an $80,000 parlay proposition bet with an online sports book, to win $1.1 million, wagering that Porter would underperform in the March 20 game.”
Porter also limited his own game participation “to influence the outcome of one or more bets on his performance in at least one Raptor game,” according to the NBA.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement, “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 also questioned “the sufficiency of the regulatory framework currently in place” for legal sports betting.
The NBA statement said Porter placed at least 13 bets between January and March while traveling with the Raptors by using an associate’s betting account. They weren’t made on games that involved Porter. His winnings, according to the NBA, were $21,965.
Porter placed over 1,000 bets on a FanDuel account that was closed after he signed a two-way contract with the Raptors in December, according to Action Network, a sports betting media site.
