NBA Awards Voters Barred from Betting on Those Markets

Posted on: August 16, 2024, 06:20h. 

Last updated on: August 16, 2024, 06:21h.

Todd Shriber @etfgodfather Read More
Expertise: Financial, Gaming Business, Mergers and Acquisitions.

In news that elicited reactions of “It was allowed?” and “What took so long?”, the NBA will forbid awards voters from wagering on those markets.

NBA Adam Silver sports betting
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver at the 2023 NBA Draft The league is reportedly banning voters from betting awards such as MVP. (Image: AP)

“NBA on TNT” reporter Jared Greenberg broke the news earlier Friday, citing the league’s communications office.

NBA Award voters are now officially prohibited from making wagers on NBA Awards categories during any season in which they are voting, per @NBAPR,” wrote Greenberg in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

During the 2023-24 NBA season, awards such as Coach of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, MVP, and the All-NBA teams, among others, were voted on by a panel of 99 members of broadcast and print media. The results were audited and counted by accounting firm Ernst & Young LLP.

Questions About NBA Awards Betting Have Merit

As of this writing, many of the responses to Greenberg’s X post expressed dismay and/or surprise that voters that have a hand in determining the outcome of the various NBA awards were ever allowed to place related wagers.

To date, there’s no evidence of chicanery in NBA awards balloting, but in any given season, fans and some members of the media like to stir up debate surrounding some of the marquee awards, such as MVP. For example, it was often said that in any season during the prime of his career, LeBron James could have won MVP. More recently, the same has been said of Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokić. He’s won the top award in three of the past four seasons, but some fans argue he should have won it four consecutive years.

As for the call to ban voters from wagering on awards, it could prove to be a smart move by the NBA on a geographic level. Of the league’s 30 franchises, 19 are located in jurisdictions in which some form of sports wagering is permitted. That includes 17 states, Washington, DC, and Ontario, Canada.

News of the association’s decision to ban voters from wagering on the awards in which they have a say in determining the outcomes emerged just months after former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter was banned from the league for life for allegedly altering outcomes of contests in which he played. The NBA didn’t say if that scandal was an impetus for the awards decision.

NBA Still Steeped in Gaming Ties

Across the NBA, gaming ties are evident. The owners of at least three teams have direct ties to casino gaming. Those include Dan Gilbert of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Tilman Fertitta of the Houston Rockets, and Adelson and Dumont families who have majority control of the Dallas Mavericks. Dr. Miriam Adelson is the largest individual shareholder in Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS).

Washington Wizards owner Ted Leonsis controls Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which was a driving force in bringing retail sportsbooks to several arenas and stadiums in Washington, DC.

Under the terms of the league’s collective bargaining agreement (CBA), which was struck last year, players are allowed to invest in wagering companies. Speaking of the CBA, it included implications for awards markets because it stipulates that players must appear in a minimum of 65 games to be eligible for MVP, All-NBA teams, and other marquee awards.