Source: Alika Jenner / Getty
Toronto Raptors’ Jontay Porter’s NBA career is officially over after he received a lifetime ban for violating league gaming rules.
Sports betting is growing like an untamed wildfire across the United States and if you watch sports commentary or actual sports games, you’ll see dozens of ads with promo codes to try and get your money. With betting growing exponentially, it was only a matter of time before a player violated league rules to try and make fast cash.
According to ESPN, an investigation found that Jontay Porter violated gaming rules, and the NBA delivered the harshest punishment possible. On April 17, Porter received a lifetime ban from Commissioner Adam Silver.
“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,” Commissioner Silver said in a statement.
Silver also doubled down on the NBA’s commitment to find future cheaters so that the game remains protected.
“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. Working closely with all relevant stakeholders across the industry, we will continue to work diligently to safeguard our league and game,” Silver said.
The following has been released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/h2TIkaE7xs
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 17, 2024
Porter reportedly bet on 13 games from a friend’s account totaling $54,094 and won $21,965. Essentially he threw away his NBA career for twenty grand and embarrassed his family including his brother, Nuggets star Michael Porter Jr.
NBA investigation found that prior to March 20 game, Porter disclosed confidential information about his health to an NBA bettor. Another person connected to Porter placed an $80K parlay to win $1.1 million wagering Porter would underperform. The bet ultimately was frozen. https://t.co/d2CFaJ9vR0
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 17, 2024
To make matters worse, insider Shams Charania revealed that one of Porter’ss friends placed an $80k underbet on him in hopes of winning a million dollars which was red flag considering that he never got heft bets of that amount. That bet was frozen and set off alarm bells that something was awry.
As previously reported the original investigation was launched after irregularities were found in underbets involving the Toronto Raptors player.
It’s said to see that Jontay Porter lost a $ 400,000-a-year job for just an extra $20K.