Sources: NBA and betting houses review the bets most susceptible to manipulation
Before the season, the NBA identified missed free throws, fouls and turnovers as types of bets susceptible to manipulation and asked its sportsbook partners not to offer such bets.
In the wake of the NBA betting scandal, the league and its sportsbook partners continue to review which types of bets are most vulnerable to manipulation and how much users should be able to bet on them, sources familiar with the conversations told AM850.
Before the season, the NBA identified missed free throws, fouls and turnovers as types of bets susceptible to manipulation and asked its sportsbook partners not to offer such bets, according to sources. FanDuel and DraftKings confirmed to AM850 that they had accepted the NBA’s request. FanDuel did not offer these types of bets in previous seasons; DraftKings did offer live betting on free throws made or missed, but these were not available before games.
The talks, which are ongoing, also included defining appropriate betting limits for bets most vulnerable to manipulation, the sources said. Betting limits on special bets on players are usually lower than those on handicap bets on a match, for example.
“Special bets on individual player performance may raise greater questions about the integrity of the game and require more extensive oversight,” an NBA spokesperson told AM850, adding that the league will continue to work closely with its sports betting partners and evaluate current betting offerings on an ongoing basis.
Special bets on player statistics, such as total points or rebounds, are under increased scrutiny after federal authorities alleged that veteran NBA point guard Terry Rozier conspired with bettors in a scheme centered on special bets on his statistics.
According to the indictment, Rozier informed a childhood friend of his intention to withdraw early from a game in March 2023, and this friend allegedly sold the information to bettors for approximately $100,000.
Bookmakers reported a significant increase in interest in betting that Rozier would score fewer points than expected before the game, prompting them to withdraw special bets on him hours before the game. Rozier played just over nine minutes before leaving the game, citing a foot injury. The indictment alleges that bettors were able to bet $257,700 on Rozier scoring fewer points than expected, spread across multiple bookmakers.
The morning of the game, a bettor at a Mississippi sportsbook placed 30 bets on Rozier to score fewer points than expected, for a total of $13,759, according to betting records obtained by AM850 in July.
DraftKings told AM850 that this betting scandal demonstrates how effectively the industry monitors suspicious betting activity.
“Recent events demonstrate that the regulated sports betting industry is operating as intended, fostering a collaborative environment between operators, leagues, regulators, law enforcement and integrity monitoring services to help detect suspicious activity,” a DraftKings spokesperson told AM850.
FanDuel said it maintains an open dialogue with the leagues and that its risk management and operations team monitors integrity issues.
“From the beginning, our collaboration with the NBA has helped us determine what bets not to offer, such as fouls, turnovers or missed free throws, and in collaboration with the league, we have been able to evolve our offering, including eliminating special bets on players on two-way or ten-day contracts,” a FanDuel spokesperson told AM850.
Ahead of the 2024-25 season, the NBA asked sportsbooks not to offer “under” bets for players on dual or 10-day contracts after former Toronto Raptors center Jontay Porter, who was on a dual contract, was banned from the league for his alleged involvement in a betting scheme based on his special bets. Porter admitted to manipulating his performance in two games during the 2023-24 season so that those who bet on him could make profits with “under” bets. Some of the same gamblers charged in Porter’s scheme were named in the indictment against Rozier last week.
Special bets on players have become increasingly popular, especially in the NBA, and represent a growing percentage of total bets on basketball. They are especially popular in accumulator bets, which increase the prizes of winning bets.
While its partner sportsbooks can agree to requests to remove certain bets, the NBA does not have as much influence over what daily fantasy operators, prediction markets and foreign sportsbooks offer.
The Sports Betting Alliance (SBA), a lobbying group representing major US sportsbooks, said any widespread ban on special bets would push bettors onto illegal and unregulated platforms that “lack oversight, offer no consumer protections and refuse to cooperate with integrity investigations.”
“This creates a dangerous blind spot for regulators and leagues, preventing them from effectively identifying and addressing threats to the integrity of the game,” Jeremy Kudon, president of the SBA, told AM850.
