Celtics’ Jaylen Brown says NBA falling short in shielding players from sports-betting backlash
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New York — Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown said Friday that the NBA has not done enough to protect its athletes from growing fan pressure and abuse connected to sports wagering.
Speaking to reporters before the Celtics’ loss at Madison Square Garden, Brown argued that players are increasingly confronted by gamblers upset over failed parlays and other bets. “They’re like, ‘You make X amount of money, you should be able to deal with all the extra negativity, the people approaching you about the parlays,’” he said. “It creates a negative discourse around the game and players when people have money involved.”
Brown’s remarks came one day after Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier were arrested in a federal investigation into illegal sports betting and rigged poker games linked to organized crime. Prosecutors allege Rozier told an associate he would remove himself from a 2023 Charlotte Hornets game to help “under” prop bets cash, while Billups faces wire-fraud and money-laundering charges for allegedly providing bettors with advance injury information and participating in fixed poker contests. Both men deny the accusations.
The Celtics star, who serves as a vice president of the National Basketball Players Association, criticized the league for focusing on revenue rather than player welfare. “I don’t think once, from my conversations with the union, that the NBA has been like, ‘How can we protect players more with this environment?’” he said. “There’s been little to no conversation around that.”
NBA spokesman Mike Bass responded in a statement, saying, “Player and coach safety has always been of critical importance. League security works with team officials and law enforcement to respond to any type of fan behavior that violates our code of conduct. We have put safeguards in place, including social media monitoring, to track and mitigate any potential threats or safety risks.”
Brown, who played alongside Rozier in Boston from 2016 to 2019, added that the allegations are “not conducive of his character” and stressed the need to clear Rozier’s name if he is found innocent. “Right now, getting all the information and getting to the bottom of it is the most important thing,” he said.
Source: Hoops Wire
