The NBA and MLB, two of the most popular sports leagues in the United States, are facing delicate situations related to sports betting. In the case of the basketball league, Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter was removed due to possible involvement in a betting scheme.
For this reason, the athlete was left out of a match against the Brooklyn Nets.
Therefore, Porter is being investigated for two specific games in which there was a significant increase in “under” bets on his statistics. This situation raised suspicions and resulted in his temporary exclusion from the team.
Players, coaching staffs and other people involved with the NBA are prohibited, by contract, from engaging in sports betting. Depending on the case, the league may fine, suspend or even cancel contracts due to betting.
Case involving the most valuable baseball athlete on the planet
In MLB, Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani is at the center of an investigation involving his former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara. Ohtani, even with the investigation ongoing, is expected to continue playing for the Dodgers.
The MLB Players Association has been collecting information about the case, while the Department of Investigations has formally begun its investigation.
Ohtani’s former interpreter was fired after being accused of embezzling the player’s money to bet on a platform under federal investigation.
The total diverted is at least US$4.5 million (R$23 million) in nine payments of US$500,000.
Initially, Mizuhara allegedly claimed that Ohtani was upset with him because he hates gambling, but that he agreed to pay off his debts so that he would never gamble again.
However, with investigations ongoing, Mizuhara admitted that this story was a lie and that Ohtani had no knowledge of his bets or debts.
Like the NBA, Major League Baseball prohibits players and employees from placing bets