NBA bans Jontay Porter for violating betting rules

Toronto Raptors two-way forward Jontay Porter has been banned from the NBA for violating the league's gaming rules, in part by placing bets on NBA games through an associate's betting account, the league announced.

Porter had been listed as out for personal reasons while the league investigated suspicious gambling activity flagged by licensed sports betting operators.

The league's investigation determined Porter bet $54,094 on NBA games through his associate, winning $76,059 for a net profit of $21,965.

Though Porter didn't play in any of the games he bet on, he did make three multi-team parlays that included the Raptors losing a contest. All three parlays lost.

The probe uncovered multiple other violations of NBA rules, including disclosing his health status to an individual he knew of as a bettor. That individual placed an $80,000 parlay on Porter to underperform in a March 20 game, with a payout of $1.1 million. The bet was frozen by the sportsbook that flagged suspicious activity.

Porter was found to have limited his own game participation in order to influence the outcome of bets, including when he left that March 20 game after three minutes due to illness.

"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 gaming rules are being met with the most severe punishment," said league commissioner Adam Silver.

Porter averaged 4.4 points and 3.2 rebounds in 13.8 minutes across 26 games with the Raptors this season. He'd been out of the NBA since playing 11 games with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2020-21.

"The Raptors are fully supportive of the league's decision to ban Jontay Porter from the NBA and are grateful for the swift resolution to this investigation. We will continue to cooperate with all ongoing inquiries," announced the franchise.