Jontay Porter Is Officially Banned From The NBA For Gambling, Social Media Piles On

Source: Michael Hickey / Getty

W elp, it’s official! Now-former NBA player Jontay Porter has managed to get himself banned from the league for violating its gaming rules after an internal investigation found that Porter disclosed “confidential information to sports bettors, limiting his own participation in one or more games for betting purposes, and betting on NBA games,” according to the NBA’s official press release .

As we reported last month , the Toronto Raptors forward was accused of betting on himself in multiple games, as well as leaving games early in order to influence the outcome to benefit bets he would profit from. Much of the scrutiny Porter came under stemmed from a game the Raptors played against the Sacramento Kings on March 20.

Here’s what the investigation found, according to the NBA:

The league’s investigation found that prior to the Raptors’ March 20 game, Porter disclosed confidential information about his own health status to an individual he knew to be an NBA bettor.  Another individual with whom Porter associated and knew to be an NBA bettor subsequently placed an $80,000 parlay proposition bet with an online sports book, to win $1.1 million, wagering that Porter would underperform in the March 20 game.

The league’s investigation also found that Porter limited his own game participation to influence the outcome of one or more bets on his performance in at least one Raptors game.  In the March 20 game, Porter played only three minutes, claiming that he felt ill.  Due to the unusual betting activity and actions of the player, the $80,000 proposition bet was frozen and was not paid out.

In addition, from January through March 2024, while traveling with the Raptors or Raptors 905, the Raptors’ NBA G League affiliate, Porter placed at least 13 bets on NBA games using an associate’s online betting account.  These bets ranged in size from $15 to $22,000, for a total of $54,094.  The total payout from these bets was $76,059, resulting in net winnings of $21,965.  None of the bets involved any game in which Porter played.  Three of the bets were multi-game parlay bets that included one Raptors game, in which Porter bet that the Raptors would lose.  All three bets lost.

Of course, sports fans on X have been sounding off about the controversy since the news of the investigation broke, and that hasn’t changed now that Porter is out of the league for good. Once that announcement was made, folks on social media erupted in commentary ranging from shock, awe and head-shaking at Porter’s audacity, to comments by people defending the 24-year-old and saying other NBA players have done far worse without getting the boot.

Let’s take a look at some of the reactions.