San Antonio Spurs rookie Carter Bryant avoided the topic altogether when asked about the stakes he’d set with fellow rookie Dylan Harper over who would win the NBA’s Rookie of the Year Award.
“I’m trying to stay away from betting,” he said, laughing.
Most players have intentionally strayed from the topic, especially following former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter’s lifetime ban from the league. Porter’s brother dove headfirst.
“Think about it,” Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. said. “If you can get all your homies rich by (saying): ‘Yo, bet $10,(000) on my under … this one game I’m (going to) act like I got an injury.’ And they all get a (little) bag? Some people come from nothing and they think like that.”
Michael Porter Jr. on sports betting
“Think about it if you can get all your homies rich by telling yo bet 10K on my under..this one game imma act like I got an injury and they all get a lil bag… some people come from nothing & they think like that.”
(Via @onenightsteiny) pic.twitter.com/rxIaNoW19w
— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) August 12, 2025
Porter Jr. wasn’t advocating for the act, but rather attempting to explain the mindset of players who didn’t grow up with money. His brother included.
“Jontay … wasn’t blessed with a lot of money,” Porter Jr. said, “because maybe God knew he couldn’t handle that temptation.”
He covered his own vices as well.
“Everybody has different things that they struggle with,” Porter Jr. said. “My brother struggled with gambling, my vice has always come in the form of women.”
He continued, “I don’t think being with women all the time and sleeping around and doing stuff like that is cool. And I haven’t necessarily been doing that. But nevertheless, women has always been my vice.”
Porter Jr. has been in the league for six seasons, all spent with the Denver Nuggets. Last year, he averaged 18.2 points, 2.1 assists and seven rebounds on 50 percent shooting from the field. He played a crucial role in Denver’s playoff run, but wasn’t able to will it to a Game 7 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round of the Western Conference Playoffs.
He now hopes to leave a positive impact in Brooklyn on a team with a long road ahead. And perhaps work on his own struggles, too.
“I’m really excited for this next chapter,” Porter Jr. said. “Over there in Denver, I feel like my ceiling had kind of plateaued. We just have a way of playing … that two-man game is very potent.”
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