Multiple NCAA Teams and NBA Players Involved In Investigation

Multiple NCAA basketball teams have been named in an ongoing federal investigation into illegal sports betting. The situation first began a few years with the banning of former NBA player Jontay Porter as a result of gambling on his own games and now has widened to include more NBA players and multiple NCAA schools.

Porter was banned after an investigation because he “(disclosed) confidential information to sports bettors, (limited) his own participation in one or more games for betting purposes, and (bet) on NBA games.” He was suspected and later admitted to taking himself out of games during last season, which would result in bets on his poor stats hitting. This was all because he had accrued a significant amount of gambling debts and needed to pay them off.

Porter became the first player to get banned from the NBA in over sixty years. The punishment was fitting of the crime according to NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who released a statement shortly after.

“There is nothing more important than protecting the integrity of NBA competition for our fans, our teams and everyone associated with our sport, which is why Jontay Porter’s blatant violation of our gaming rules are being met with the most severe punishment.”

Rozier Under Investigation, Leads To NCAA Probe

The investigation has now expanded to Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, who is suspected of fixing his stats to satisfy betting odds. Rozier allegedly took himself out of a game in 2023 after only scoring five points and playing ten minutes, citing a foot injury. The league conducted an investigation that found Rozier innocent, but a new investigation conducted by the U.S Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.

While the investigation was underway into the spike in abnormal prop bets by Porter and Rozier, it found similar patterns in numerous NCAA programs. Temple, Eastern Michigan, North Carolina A&T, and Central Michigan are all involved after it was confirmed that there were a few games dating back to last season that raised flags.

The NCAA released a statement recently, which outlined how they will publicly proceed in the investigation.

“The Association works with integrity monitoring services, state regulators and other stakeholders to conduct appropriate due diligence whenever suspicious reports are received. Due to confidentiality rules put in place by NCAA member schools, the NCAA will not comment on current or potential investigations.”

Will There Be More Programs Involved?

The deep dive into the world of online sports betting may out some more programs or players involved in game fixing and points shaving. After all, just a year and a half has passed since Rozier’s supposed involvement, but Porter and multiple NCAA schools have also been caught or have suspicious activity revolving around certain games and their betting lines.

Alarms went off last year when multiple games involving Easter Michigan, Temple, and Central Michigan were all flagged due to irregularities in bets. In almost all of the cases, the bettors were placing very large wagers on the first half point differentials, suggesting a pattern and catching the attention of an already ongoing probe.

“At this time, there is belief of a potential tie between these bettors, and bettors who placed suspicious wagers on First Half markets in flagged games last season,” the alert stated according to ESPN.

The tie in bettors and the odd wagers suggests a widespread inside job, or a web of betters that have access to inside or confidential information like in the case of Jontay Porter. The scope of the investigation is sure to keep expanding and may result in stricter consequences or regulations. As Adam Silver stated, the integrity of the game is what keeps athletes and fans engaged. Preserving that is what is at the heart of the investigation and will be the driving force in weeding out more individuals that may have some involvement.