The NBA is investigating Raptors player for possible gambling ties

The NBA is investigating irregularities in prop bets involving Porter, a backup power forward for Toronto. In two separate games this season, gamblers who took the under on Porter's props were the biggest moneymakers of the night, both in games where Porter exited early due to injuries that weren't obvious.

Porter played only four minutes in Toronto's Jan. 26 loss to the Clippers, leaving after the team said he reaggravated an exiting eye injury. He went under all his player props after his scoreless night, in which he didn't attempt a shot but grabbed three rebounds. 

The next day, DraftKings reported that "the under on Porter's three-pointers was the biggest money winner for bettors of any NBA player props from games that evening."

It was a similar story when the Raptors played the Phoenix Suns on March 20. Porter played less than three minutes, leaving the game due to an unspecified illness, once again going under all his player props. 

Once again, DraftKings reported "Porter's prop bets were the No. 1 moneymaker from the night."

It's suspicious because neither ailment kept Porter out past the game in question. Porter played 19 minutes and scored 12 points Jan. 28, showing no signs of the eye injury from two nights previous. 

Two days after the March 20 game, Porter's illness had improved enough that he played over 20 minutes against Oklahoma City.

The NBA has embraced gambling in recent years, with prop bets prominently featured on its broadcast partners' telecasts and sports books in multiple team arenas. Even ESPN, who reported this story, has its own sports book, which they will no doubt promote while also reporting on this scandal.

Porter is on a two-way contract with the Raptors this season, earning $415K. His brother, Michael Porter Jr., is a star for the Denver Nuggets and makes $33.4M. But it certainly looks suspicious that the little-known Porter inspired so much prop bet actions on games where he happened to leave early.

He's also had some other suspicious behavior, like when he claimed he was hacked by someone fraudulently offering to sell PlayStation 5 consoles.

Porter also claims to have made huge profits in trading options and cryptocurrency.

He asserted that he "turned $5K into $100K" and also boasted that he'd turned $50 into $200K "in a couple of days." That kind of high-risk trading might also explain why Porter might need a quick infusion of cash from another kind of risky move. Like agreeing to leave a game early to preserve the under on his player props.

This has always been the risk of associating professional sports too closely with gambling. The big sums available from shaving points or fixing games are alluring, especially to players making less than the league minimum. Porter's not a huge star, but the Raptors certainly would have preferred to have him available in those games.

Neither the NBA nor Porter has commented, and he remains out with a "personal matter." There's no word on when or if he'll return to the Raptors, but if that happens, you probably shouldn't take the over on any of his props.