Gambling has never been more woven into the NBA, but not everyone inside the league is comfortable with it.
San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama and Minnesota Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly have both raised concerns about gambling’s role in the sport. Wembanyama said he would “absolutely not” partner with a sportsbook, while Connelly worried about fans tuning in only to bet.
FanDuel and DraftKings are considered the NBA’s Domestic Official Gaming Partners, while several more operators are listed as the league’s Domestic Authorized Gaming Operators. The NBA is also exploring potential partnerships with prediction markets, according to Front Office Sports.
What Wembanyama and Connelly said
Multiple players are partners with sports betting operators and prediction markets. Wembanyama will never be one of them.
“Absolutely not, I would never do that,” Wembanyama said on partnering with an operator, according to The Athletic‘s Jared Weiss. “Honestly, I think it’s very sad to see some players promote it, in my opinion. Everybody does whatever they want, but without me.”
Wembanyama added that he’d only promote companies that have a “good impact” and a “good influence in the world.” He’s turned down large endorsement deals that “were not to my values.”
Connelly’s concerns centered on how fans consume the game.
“We have to be cognizant that we’re not developing a generation of people only watching the sport to gamble,” he said, according to The Athletic‘s Mike Vorkunov. “I hope that sports and the enjoyment of sports is not adversely affected by people watching the games for the wrong reasons.”
Current NBA players with gambling ties
Prediction markets, which are federally regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, have offered sports event contracts since 2025. Those contracts have come under heavy scrutiny for resembling sports betting, and New Jersey has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the issue.
The Philadelphia 76ers’ newest acquisition LeBron James has been in the gambling spotlight for years, first partnering with DraftKings. He has since taken his talents to prediction markets, inking a deal with Polymarket.
While with the Milwaukee Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo became the first NBA player to join Kalshi as a shareholder and has since starred in two commercials for the operator. Other NBA players are also tied to Kalshi:
- Phoenix Suns’ Devin Booker as an endorser
- Bucks’ Kyle Kuzma as an investor
- Miami Heat’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. as an investor
- Oklahoma City Thunder’s Ajay Mitchell as an investor
Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant is an indirect investor in Kalshi through his venture firm, 35V. Boardroom, the media company he co-founded, signed a content partnership with FanDuel in 2022.
The NBA is expected to have a prediction market partner by the time the regular season starts, Front Office Sports reported last month, with “deal terms on the table.”
Gambling issues the NBA has faced
The concerns from Wembanyama and Connelly come after a stretch of gambling scandals that have shaken the NBA over the past two years.
The league banned former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter for manipulating his performance and wagering on his team to lose. He’s awaiting sentencing.
Former Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier faces federal charges, including wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges, for allegedly leaving a March 2023 game early while with the Charlotte Hornets so bettors could profit, though he has pleaded not guilty.
Former Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups was charged in a separate case tied to allegedly rigged, mob-backed poker games, and has pleaded not guilty. Damon Jones, a former NBA assistant coach and player charged in both the Rozier and Billups cases, became the first defendant to plead guilty in April.
Malik Beasley was the latest player to get indicted in a betting scheme. Beasley allegedly manipulated his performance to help co-conspirators win prop bet wagers.
