A bombshell report came out on Monday afternoon, that Jontay Porter of the Toronto Raptors will be away from the team and is under investigation in relation to gambling irregularities. The 24-year-old center has been in and out of the Raptors rotation this season, bouncing back and forth with the G-League team on a two-way contract.
Toronto Raptors center Jontay Porter is out of the lineup and a subject of an NBA investigation into irregularities on prop betting involving him, sources tell @DavidPurdum, @ESPNWindhorst and me. Story soon. pic.twitter.com/DncBNbDptW
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 25, 2024
The story is explosive, as the league is investigating multiple instances when Porter’s prop bets received suspiciously high volume - all to the under. In the two games in question, Porter left early, once with eye irritation, and the other time with an illness.
Incriminating evidence against Porter
Porter left both games very early and didn’t return, allowing all of his under props to cash easily. The games took place on January 26th and March 20th. In the first game, Porter played just four minutes before leaving the game, and the next day DraftKings Sportsbook reported that the under for Porter’s three-pointers made had the most money bet of any NBA prop.
On the March 20th game, Porter left after just three minutes, cashing all of his unders easily. And yet again, DraftKings reported that those bets were the biggest moneymakers of the night. For people to be betting so much on Porter’s props is suspicious by itself. His leaving both games early for reasons that are hard to verify is beyond suspicious.
This has the potential to become one of the biggest stories in sports and the NBA needs to take swift and strong action. They need to deliver a zero-tolerance message, possibly even banishing Porter from the league for life.
Relation to Michael Porter Jr. of the Nuggets
Jontay is the younger brother of Nuggets forward, Michael Porter Jr. who declined to speak to the media after Monday night’s win over the Grizzlies. Matt Moore of the Action Network tweeted out that as of now, MPJ is not involved in the league’s investigation.
MPJ is not, to the best of my knowledge or that of anyone I’ve spoken to, involved in any regard with the investigation of his brother Jontay. https://t.co/l1lts8QIX7
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) March 26, 2024
But still, this is WAY too close for comfort and if Jontay was actually point-shaving or fixing games in any way, this is not a story that will go away any time soon. Even if MPJ truly knows nothing and has zero involvement, it will likely be a huge distraction as Porter Jr. and the Nuggets get ready for the playoffs and attempt to repeat as NBA champions.
MPJ is in year two of a 5 year, $179.3 million contract, while Jontay has a $415,000 two-way contract for this season only. No matter what the league finds, it’s hard to imagine this story will just go away. And it may lead to something much, much bigger. Sports leagues getting in bed with gambling companies has certainly blurred the lines and the NBA needs to protect the integrity of the game at all costs.