Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier were arrested recently over allegations of illegal gambling rackets. It doesn’t look good. USA Today reports that Rozier mysteriously pulled himself out of a game in 2023, the same year he was facing an $8 million tax lien from the IRS. Both men have denied the accusations.
The legalization and promotion of sports betting has been an absolute disaster. David French has a good recent column pointing out that the kind of legal sports betting that happens on your smartphone is viciously addictive. A young man with more confidence than sense is going to have a very hard time resisting those ads that promise "to make every moment more.” Even if that young man is himself a professional athlete.
I don’t believe most current NBA or NFL players are actively throwing games. But French quotes one active NBA coach who acknowledged that betting affects the game, even if those on the team don’t do it.
With so much addiction, bankruptcy and despair, it should come as no surprise that gambling is now damaging the lives of players and coaches, even if they don’t gamble. As Steve Kerr, the coach of the Golden State Warriors, said Thursday, his players receive the “wrath” of fans whose bets fail. The N.C.A.A.’s Clint Hangebrauck told The Guardian that prop bets in particular can place a “target on their back.”
What else does legal sports betting do? It creates a thick air of suspicion. A few days ago, former NFL quarterback Boomer Esiason admitted that the current prevalence of sports betting makes him wonder about bad calls in previous years. He mentions the infamous no-call in the 2018 NFC Championship Game between the Rams and Saints. Esiason says, “I think of that game, and I really do wonder.”
This is exactly what I said would happen.
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