Sports gambling has surged in popularity since 2018, when the US Supreme Court allowed individual states to regulate sports betting, ending the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, which had largely restricted sports betting to Nevada. Since then, amounts wagered have skyrocketed from $310 million wagered in June 2018 to over $13.9 billion wagered in January of 2024. We know about the adverse effects of sports gambling on consumers, as addictions form quickly and from there, it’s extremely easy to lose everything. What we don’t understand, however, is the extent to which people inside of professional sports organizations are abusing this “game,” and the scandals that come with it.
On Oct. 23, the FBI arrested 34 people as part of illegal sports betting investigations. The investigation covered 11 states and tens of millions of dollars, being traced back to a variety of organized crime networks, including the Mafia. Among the people arrested were Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier III and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups. Since the arrests, Rozier has been released by the Heat and Billups has been fired by the Blazers. The NBA has extremely strict rules against people affiliated with a franchise, in any capacity, betting on any NBA-related properties. Rozier was accused of aiding bettors with nonpublic information to bet on at least seven games from March 2023 to March 2024. In three of those games, players intentionally removed themselves from games in order to benefit the bettors’ wagers. Billups, a pro basketball hall of famer, was also accused of running rigged underground poker games, backed by the Mafia, scamming people out of millions.
Surely, after hearing about the scandal, you would assume that this was a fluke and something that won’t ever happen again, but in reality, it has happened before, and will probably continue to happen. Just last year, Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter was banned for life from the NBA for betting on games. Although he did not play in any of the games he bet on, he was still found in violation of the league’s code of conduct, earning him the ban. In addition, former Detroit Pistons guard Malik Beasley is currently under federal investigation for placing bets on NBA games throughout the 2023-24 season. Beasley is currently a free agent and is awaiting the results of his investigation.
Problems with gambling in sports transcend even beyond the NBA. In 2023, Detroit Lions star receiver Jameson Williams, among others, was suspended six games by the NFL for violating the league’s gambling policy. Other players, such as the Vikings’ Isaiah Rodgers, the Commanders’ Shaka Toney, and the Lions’ Quintez Cephus have been suspended as well. The MLB and NHL have also had issues over the past couple of years.
The Rozier/Billups investigation is no doubt going to have the trickle-down effect on future policies and disciplinary action when it comes to illegal gambling. For example, the NCAA had put a rule on the table that was supposed to go into effect on Nov. 1, allowing collegiate athletes to bet on professional sporting events. That legislation’s effective date has now been pushed back to Nov. 22, giving the NCAA more time to reconsider the change.
All that to say, sports betting needs to be wrangled. These days, you can bet on anything from the moneyline to the amount of times Taylor Swift is shown on the broadcast. Since betting has become digital, it has become way too easily accessible and will continue to rage out of control if action is not taken. In my opinion, leagues should be done with suspensions, and anyone found betting on the league that they are a part of should no longer be able to participate in said league. If this happens, I believe that these scandals will decrease at a dramatic rate. No one wants to throw away a childhood dream, something that they have been working for their entire lives, just for a chance to win. And for us, the fans, as soon as we stop trusting that what we’re watching is real, and not just an intricate casino game, the games we love are gone. No parlay is worth that price.
