NBA Tightens Oversight on Player Prop Bets

The NBA and its co-official sports betting partners are taking a hard look at player prop bets in the wake of recent gambling scandals, focusing on which types of wagers are most vulnerable to manipulation and what limits should be placed on them, sources told ESPN.

Sensitive Bets, on the Table

Before the season began, the league flagged missed free throws, fouls, and turnovers as particularly risky and asked sportsbooks not to offer bets on those events. 

FanDuel and DraftKings agreed to comply. FanDuel has avoided these bets for years, while DraftKings previously offered in-game free-throw wagers but removed them before games this season. 

Sources say discussions are ongoing about appropriate betting limits for the most sensitive wagers. “Prop bets on individual player performance can raise heightened integrity concerns and warrant additional scrutiny,” an NBA spokesperson told ESPN. 

The spotlight on props intensified after veteran guard Terry Rozier was indicted for allegedly conspiring with gamblers. According to federal authorities, Rozier told a childhood friend he planned to exit a March 2023 game early. 

The friend allegedly sold this information, leading to roughly $100,000 in bets. Rozier played just over nine minutes, citing a foot injury, and sportsbooks reported a rush of bets on the under for his stats, totaling $257,700 across multiple sites.

“Recent events demonstrate that the regulated sports betting industry is working as intended, fostering an environment of collaboration between operators, leagues, regulators, law enforcement, and integrity monitoring services,” a DraftKings spokesperson said. 

FanDuel highlighted similar precautions, noting that its risk and trading teams closely monitor games and work with the NBA to remove high-risk bets, including props on players with two-way or 10-day contracts.

“Dangerous Blind Spot”

The NBA’s concern about props is not new. Before this season, it asked sportsbooks to avoid bets on players on two-way or 10-day contracts after former Raptors center Jontay Porter was banned for manipulating games to benefit bettors. Some bettors from the Porter case are linked to Rozier’s scheme.

Player props have grown in popularity, particularly for parlays, but the NBA can only influence licensed sportsbooks. In the meantime, daily fantasy operators, prediction markets, and offshore platforms operate with less oversight. Jeremy Kudon, president of the Sports Betting Alliance, warned that banning prop bets entirely could push more action to unregulated platforms, creating “a dangerous blind spot” for leagues and regulators trying to protect game integrity.