Jontay Porter was the anti-Pete Rose.
While Rose maintained he never bet on the Reds to lose, the NBA said Porter, who just received a lifetime ban for violating the league’s gambling policies, bet on the Raptors to lose.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski called that the “most damning” part of Porter’s transgressions.
“Most damning for Porter and the NBA itself: He bet the Raptors to lose, according to league’s investigation,” Wojnarowski tweeted Thursday.
The NBA dropped the hammer on Porter on Wednesday, capping its investigation by booting him from the league after discovering he bet on games, which is forbidden.
Porter, the younger brother of Nuggets star Michael Porter Jr., also provided insider information and influenced his playing time to affect his props.
The league listed all the particular details in a lengthy release, but the info regarding his bets particularly stands out.
From January through March 2024, while Porter was traveling either with the Raptors or their G League team, Raptors 905, he placed at least 13 wagers on NBA games using an associate’s online betting account, according to the league’s statement.
The bets, ranging from $15 to $22,000, totaled $54,094 and won $76,059, with a gross of $21,965.
What to know about Jontay Porter's alleged gambling scheme
Jontay Porter, 24, was a forward for the Toronto Raptors before being banned from the NBA for life in April for allegedly manipulating his participation in a game to influence the outcome of a bet and also bet on NBA games.
The NBA said its investigation found that Porter was “disclosing confidential information to sports bettors” and “limiting his own participation in one or more games for betting purposes.”
Long Phi Pham, 38, was arrested on June 4 in connection with Porter’s sports gambling activity. Federal prosecutors are arguing that Porter was telling Pham how he planned to perform in games in order for Pham to place certain bets on those particular games.
Two more suspects were arrested in the scheme on June 6. Mahmud Mollah, 24, from Philadelphia, was hit with conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges after he cashed in on $1.13 million in bets from the two rigged games that led to Porter receiving a lifetime ban from the NBA.
Mollah was joined in Brooklyn Federal Court by New York native Timothy McCormack, 36, who faces the same charges.
The two men, alongside Pham, are believed to have made an agreement with Porter to share their gambling winnings with the former NBA player from the games in which Porter was planning his performance based on the bets made.
Porter did not play in any of the games involved in the bets, but three of the wagers were multi-game parlays that included the Raptors’ game as one of the legs.
Parlays are wagers that require multiple results to all cash in order to be be fulfilled, which increases the odds and provides a higher payout due to the lesser odds of all the legs cashing.
All of Porter’s bets called for the Raptors to lose.
All three bets ultimately lost, per the league’s report.
Michael previously said he believes his brother would not have jeopardized his career by participating in any illegal betting activities.
“I know my brother my whole life, I know what type of dude he is, I know he’s excited to play basketball, and I highly doubt he would do anything to put that in jeopardy,” Michael said in March.