Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. warned that the rapid expansion of sports wagering is altering the way fans consume NBA games, arguing that gambling has supplanted pure enjoyment of the sport.
During an appearance on the “One Night With Steiny” podcast this week (August 13), Porter said, “The enjoyment of the game isn’t for the game anymore. It’s so that people can make money. In reality, way more people are losing money than making money.”
The 26-year-old referenced the league’s surge in prop bets—wagers on individual player statistics such as points, rebounds or assists—and said athletes are routinely subjected to anger from bettors. “We really do get death threats,” Porter noted, adding that he worries about the possibility of a disgruntled gambler confronting a player in person.
Porter’s comments come 16 months after his younger brother, Jontay Porter, received a lifetime ban from the NBA. Jontay admitted in court that he removed himself from two games during the 2023/24 season so acquaintances who bet the under on his prop lines could profit, a scheme he said was intended to cover gambling debts. The league barred him in April 2024.
Alluding to that case, Michael Porter Jr. described how players from disadvantaged backgrounds might feel pressure to manipulate outcomes for friends’ financial gain. He offered a hypothetical scenario in which a player feigns an injury early in a game, saying, “That is so not OK, but some people probably think like that. They come from nothing, and all their homies have nothing.”
The 6-foot-10 forward also criticized the proliferation of online betting platforms, contending that sports would be “better off” if wagers could be placed only in person at Las Vegas casinos.
Source: HoopsRumors
