Appearing this week on the “One Night With Steiny” podcast (YouTube link), Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. warned that the growth of sports gambling is changing the experience of watching games for NBA fans, relays David Purdum of ESPN.
“The enjoyment of the game isn’t for the game anymore,” Porter told the hosts. “It’s so that people can make money. In reality, way more people are losing money than making money.”
Porter’s younger brother, Jontay Porter, made headlines last year for his participation in a gambling scheme. He was banned from the NBA in April 2024 after admitting in court testimony that he took himself out of two games during the 2023/24 season so associates who took the under on prop bets could cash in. He added that the arrangement was his way of paying off gambling debts.
Michael Porter Jr. alluded to his brother’s case on the podcast, saying he understands how players who “come from nothing” could be tempted by the opportunity to make big money for themselves and their friends by manipulating the gambling process.
“Think about it, if you could get all your homies rich by telling them, ‘Yo, bet $10,000 on my under this one game. I’m going to act like I’ve got an injury, and I’m going sit out. I’m going to come out after three minutes,'” Porter said. “And they all get a little bag because you did it one game. That is so not OK, but some people probably think like that. They come from nothing, and all their homies have nothing.”
Porter also stated that players are constantly the target of anger from bettors because they’re always “messing up” either the over or under on prop bets, which allow gamblers to predict whether they’ll have more or less than a certain number of points, rebounds, assists and other statistics.
“We really do get death threats,” Porter said, bringing up the topic of how the league would react if an irate bettor ever decided to physically attack a player.
Porter also decried the growth of online gambling, saying sports in general would be better off if bets could only be placed in person at Las Vegas casinos.
Good thing known intellectual Michael Porter Jr. spoke out about this issue.
Is he wrong?
No he is not wrong
MPJ is one of the smarter, more intellectual guys in the league. Really interesting dude.
He’s right
@last, dumb comment. He’s right. It’s terrible for sports.
Gambling only works if you treat it like a job, not a get rich quick scheme. Years ago my best friend and I played on Full Tilt Poker for awhile. Not big money by any means (we were in college), but everything we did was systematic: game selection, buy-in choice, etc. And we studied the game. Both of use ended up more than 5x our initial deposit. And yet, at the end of the day, we still realized there was a lot of luck involved. It also helped that we kept each other honest, making sure neither of us deviated from the slow and steady path.
If you’re someone who is always chasing that next high and aiming to strike it rich without a thought to process or approach, you’re likely doomed to failure. That’s when you’re most vulnerable to the addiction trap.
I haven’t watched the said podcast, but based on MPJ ‘s comments on this article, he is absolutely right.
Big corporations have taken over every facet of daily life.
This marriage between gambling and professional sports is just another feather in their cap. Their greed is never-ending.
…and will not end well.
Yeah! This!
The infusion of gambling is the downfall of any integrity in the game. I am reminded every time I see sports betting lines on baseball broadcasts that Pete Rose is banned for life. And only in Death did they give him recognition.
All major sports need to get away from gambling. As far away as possible. It really is a disease, without a cure.
Bwahahahahahaha, like Jontay Porter has any kind of influence on the game.
He’s absolutely right and he should be applauded for coming out and saying this. All these leagues promote these gambling sites as if they’re harmless and pose no threat to the integrity of the game. Then when something happens such as with Clase on the Guardians in baseball or Ridley in the NFL, the league comes down with a harsh suspension. Great job by him for calling attention to an issue that unfortunately, is creating a monster
Meh, they do it to themselves
I understand his perspective but disagree completely. So I shouldn’t be able to gamble because your brother was given a golden opportunity and chose to break the law? Lots of people come from nothing and don’t break the law. Gambling shouldn’t be banned because of some bad actors. It should be properly regulated. I agree that the leagues should not be in business with the sites and players shouldn’t be able to gamble on their sport. That just comes with the job, like working for a company and not trading stocks on insider information. Take responsibility for your actions and don’t look for a scapegoat. Fans yelling about gambling, were yelling about fantasy before that, and something else before that. I think those type of people will behave that way no matter the circumstances. There are plenty of responsible gamblers out there. You can pry this parlay from my cold dead hands!
That’s the part that people are bothered the most …. Silver and his board spreading their legs wide open for these gambling corporations.
Just pure greed.
Where in the article does MPJ suggest that gambling should be banned? Did you even read the article or did you just jump straight to the comments? The title even makes it clear he’s warning of the RISKS.
I’m sure the gambling apps love you if your reading comprehension is really that low.
I don’t know why you felt the need to attack my reading comprehension skills, but saying bets should only be able to be placed live in Las Vegas is the equivalent of a ban for the majority of the untied states. Please explain to me how I did not comprehend the article. Did you not read the entire article and just jump to the comments to try and belittle people for their opinions?
Every bet is monitored today. Computers have algorithms specifically to weed out unusual betting. Today it is policed better than the Mob days. MPJ is full of it. Not everyone is as weak as his brother. Anyone who is a real gambler knows at some point they have a problem. Whether they handle it is another issue. MPJ to assume that poor people because they grew up hard. Would sell their honor for 10 grand is ridiculous. Only privileged upbringing makes you think you can game the system. Growing up hard and poor. You learn early in life that the system usually works against you. So they aren’t going to give up their money that easy. Sounds like he is making up excuses for his brother. MPJ who has never been worth the contracts he has signed. Please
The hoops you would jump through if he played for the Knicks
Gambling on sports has been around since sports. The leagues involvement and promoting is not fun. I like watching shows that pick games, but they are all mostly ruined by them involving over/under and spreads. Fantasy sports isn’t the best either since people lose logic of the game and just stat watch.
The only reason Porter got caught was because of the bets being placed on a platform that’s monitored and reported on. That exists because of legalization.
Stupid people will still do stupid things. Except, years ago, they would have done it with a bookie. The gambling hasn’t changed, how we catch it out has.
Maybe he could have said this to his brother lol