On Monday, news broke that the NBA was launching an investigation into Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter, younger brother of Denver Nuggets star Michael Porter Jr., for gambling issues. The NBA discovered multiple instances of betting irregularities over the past few months, involving prop bets on Porter from games on Jan. 26 and March 20.
Any players, teams, or league employees are not allowed to bet on NBA games. In fact, each NBA team has personnel to monitor sports betting, and the league has many data scientists that focus on sports betting anomalies.
Since the news of this investigation broke, Jontay Porter has yet to make a public statement. He has also missed the past couple of Raptors games with the team citing he was out for personal reasons.
Michael Porter Jr. chose to not speak with the media the night the news broke. Following the Nuggets’ loss to the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday, the elder Porter did make himself available to the media.
After discussing the outcome of the game, Porter Jr. didn’t have much to say regarding his brother. However, he did say that he doubts his brother would put his career in jeopardy.
βI know just as much as you guys know at this point,β said Porter Jr. βI’ve known my brother my whole life. I know what type of dude he is. He’s excited to play basketball, and I highly doubt he’d do anything to put that in jeopardy.β
