The Toronto Raptors’ Jontay Porter has been banned from the league after an investigation revealed he had disclosed confidential information to bettors, limited his participation in at least one game while he was with Raptors, and bet on NBA games while playing in the G League.
The NBA said in a release announcing Porter’s ban that its investigation remains open and that it is sharing information with federal authorities. ESPN reached out to the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI for comment.
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 violations of our game rules are being met with the most severe punishment,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said while announcing the ban.
The NBA launched an investigation into Porter in late March, after sportsbooks noticed irregular betting on the over/under on the reserve center’s statistics in two Raptors games. In both games, Porter exited after playing only a few minutes.
The NBA’s investigation found that Porter revealed information about his own health to a known sports bettor ahead of a March 20 game against the Sacramento Kings. Another bettor privy to the information placed an $80,000 same-game parlay bet that featured unders on Porter’s statistics and would win $1.1 million, according to the NBA. Porter played three minutes before leaving the game with an illness. The bet, which was placed at DraftKings, was not paid.
The league investigation revealed Porter placed at least 13 bets on NBA games using an associate’s online betting account. The bets ranged from $15 to $22,000, totaling $54,094, according to the league. The NBA said the total payout from those bets was $76,059, net winnings of $21,965. None of the bets involved any in which Porter played. Three of the bets were parlays, including one that included a bet on the Raptors to lose. All three bets lost, according to the NBA.
Sportsbooks also reported a spike in betting interest on the under on several of Porter’s statistics ahead of a Jan. 26 game against the Los Angeles Clippers. Porter played just four minutes before leaving the game with issues related to an eye injury suffered earlier in the week against the Memphis Grizzlies. He finished with no points, three rebounds and one assist, all under the lines sportsbooks had set for his statistics.
A sportsbook industry source, who noticed the surge in betting on Porter props in the two games in question, told ESPN that some of the same betting accounts attempted to place larger than normal bets in both instances. Most of the betting accounts that backed Porter unders in the games in question were located in New Jersey, New York and Arizona, according to multiple sources.
