Michael Porter Jr. Comments on NBA's Investigation into Raptors Center Jontay Porter

Michael Porter Jr. said his younger brother Jontay Porter would not jeopardize his career with the Toronto Raptors

Michael Porter Jr. doesn’t believe his younger brother Jontay Porter would jeopardize his NBA career.

It’s not that Jontay Porter is on some particularly lucrative contract or some star player heading toward a huge payday, but the Toronto Raptors big man now at the center of an NBA investigation into unusual gambling activity loves the game of basketball, Michael Porter Jr. told reporters Wednesday.

“He's been really excited to play with the Raptors,” said Michael Porter Jr., a forward for the Denver Nuggets. “I know that I've known my brother my whole life. I know what type of dude he is, and I know he's excited to play basketball and I highly doubt he would do anything to put that in jeopardy.”

The NBA is still investigating the strange situation surrounding Jontay Porter after DraftKings Sportsbook noticed an unusual amount of money placed on prop bets expecting Porter to go under his expected statistical totals on Jan. 26 and March 20, ESPN reported. Porter exited both games early, first with a re-aggravated eye injury and subsequently with an illness. In both instances, the unders were cashed as successful.

The investigation is the NBA’s first serious gambling-related controversy since sports betting became legalized in most parts of Canada and the United States.

Across the sports world, the NFL, NHL, and MLB have all dealt with players embroiled in gambling-related scandals.

The widespread acceptance of gambling has changed the way fans and players interact as well, Michael Porter Jr. told reporters.

“Especially the last few years you hear people in the crowd saying what they need you to score tonight or what they don't want you to score,” he said. “Every night you're disappointing someone. You're disappointing people if you score too much because they may have bet on the under, and you're disappointing people if you didn't score enough.

“So, it’s a part of the game now. I think that it's obviously a dangerous habit. It's a dangerous vice for people,” he continued. “The love of money is the root of all evil.”