Adam Silver is prepared to crack down hard on Jontay Porter if needed.
The NBA commissioner is monitoring the league’s investigation of Porter very closely. Porter is under investigation following multiple instances of gambling irregularities related to prop bets connected to his statistics over the past several months.
Silver called what Porter is being accused of a “cardinal sin” in the game and said the Toronto Raptors forward could be permanently banned from the NBA, depending on the outcome of the investigation.
““I have an enormous range of discipline available to me,” Silver told ESPN’s Tim Bontemps at the league’s annual board of governors meetings. “But it’s a cardinal sin, what he’s accused of in the NBA, and the ultimate, extreme option I have is to ban him from the game.
“That’s the level of authority I have here. Because there’s nothing more serious, I think, around this league when it comes to gambling: betting on our games. And that is a direct player involvement. And so, the investigation is ongoing, but the consequences could be very severe.”
The league is investigating two specific Toronto games – Jan. 26 against the Los Angeles Clippers and March 20 against the Sacramento Kings – where there was increased betting interest on the under for several Porter prop bets.
Porter has not played since March 22. The NBA has not disciplined a player for gambling-related issues since 1966. Former referee Tim Donaghy was found to have bet on NBA games during an FBI investigation and he resigned in 2007 before he was sentenced to 15 months in prison.
There has been an explosion of sports gambling after sports betting has been legalized in various states across the country. NBA players, coaches and all league employees are prohibited from placing bets of any kind on NBA games.
“At the end of the day, there’s nothing more important than the integrity of the competition,” Silver said. “And so, any issue raised around that is of great concern to me and to all commissioners, to all people who are safeguards, who are all people who are in a position and have a responsibility to safeguard the game. Again, this is a burgeoning industry in the United States. It’s been legal in other places in the world for decades. There’s lessons to be learned from the way that sports betting is monitored and regulated in other jurisdictions.
“And again, I think as these unfortunate examples come along, we may have to adjust our rules and our partner gaming companies and those companies that aren’t our partners may have to adjust their behavior as well.”
Porter is the brother of Denver Nuggets star Michael Porter. Porter is on a two-way contract this season, earning $415,000 in salary. He is averaging 4.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 0.8 3-pointers per game for the season.