Charlie Baker is trying to do something rare for the NCAA: get out in front of a problem.
In a week that has seen the NBA investigate Raptors center Jontay Porter over irregular prop bets and Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani at the center of a gambling investigation, the NCAA president said the organization is working to ban prop betting on college sports.
Baker said the NCAA is in the process of lobbying politicians in states where sports gambling is legal to ban college prop bets.
“This week we will be contacting officials across the country in states that allow these bets and ask them to join Ohio, Vermont, Maryland and many others and remove college prop bets from all betting markets,” Baker said in a statement.
“Sports betting issues are on the rise across the country with prop bets continuing to threaten the integrity of competition and leading to student-athletes and professional athletes getting harassed,” Baker said.
Prop bets have drawn the ire of athletes across sports since sports gambling became legal. NBA stars such as Kevin Durant and Tyrese Haliburton have spoken out about fan interactions when their performance impacts someone’s parlay. This also comes at a time when the leagues themselves are pushing for more gambling. Maybe that’s why Porter’s peers didn’t seem surprised when asked about their teammate being investigated.
“It’s just part of our sports now,” says Raptors wing Ochai Agbaji.
