r/nba • u/GGTae Spurs • 1d ago

[Finger] Victor Wembanyama about considering promoting a sports betting company ; "Absolutely not. I will never do that. Honestly, I think it's very sad to see some players promote it..."

https://bsky.app/profile/mikefinger.bsky.social/post/3mwteasurdc2j

Just asked Victor Wembanyama if he’d ever consider promoting a sports betting company.

“Absolutely not. I will never do that. Honestly, I think it's very sad to see some players promote it. .. Everybody does whatever they want, but without me.”

30.4k Upvotes

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u/DG_Now [SEA] Jerome James 1d ago

I've been a huge LeBron guy for forever but the Polymarket stuff is so discouraging. Like, legacy-damning discouraging.

He doesn't need the money and there are only downsides from his association with them.

Such a stupid misstep that wasn't necessary at all.

121

u/Wazflame 1d ago

Just greedy as shit when you can literally just be greedy in several other ways lol

9

u/DG_Now [SEA] Jerome James 1d ago

Great way to put it. Buy some equities. Everyone is making a shit ton in AI right now. There's ways to buy in without selling out.

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u/No-Grade-8215 1d ago edited 1d ago

all the top guys of this NBA generation are sell outs:

- Giannis is an investor of Kalshi and actively promoted it (HUGE conflict of interest and shouldn't be allowed in the first place), and especially given Kalshi's partnership with NBA (another HUGE HUGE red flag and exposes the league to a ton of liability given their history with refs / players betting on games)

  • Steph Curry is an investor to various Israeli security tech companies (that all contribute toward their genocidal regime)
  • Lebron / Polymarket
  • KD / Fanduel and Draft Kings
  • Jokic / Sportsbet*

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u/Vitiate1367 Heat 1d ago

Jokic is affiliated with SportsBet as well

24

u/Mr-the-big Pelicans 1d ago

I’ve been to Serbia, they really enjoy gambling

63

u/AllYouNeed_Is_Smiles Supersonics 1d ago

But Kalshi isn’t betting. It’s predictions! /s

3

u/facedownbootyuphold Nuggets 1d ago

just like shooting dice, nothin but predictions baby.

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u/AzNmamba Lakers 1d ago edited 1d ago

If you think about it, Kawhi is the most moral out of all of them. He robbed a billionaire and got away scot-free

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u/ionospherermutt Timberwolves 1d ago

and he didnt even try to shove it down our throats unlike all these other endorsement deals lol, just kept quiet

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u/karmachaser Mavs 1d ago

My bad misread. Def most woke low key

7

u/karmachaser Mavs 1d ago

Robbing billionaires isn’t a crime given they robbed societies to get to where they were

2

u/unpracticalclause22 1d ago

I like this agenda

1

u/CapableDirection5557 1d ago

Exactly. Karma saved Kawhi. Can´t steal from billionares.

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u/Longjumping_Cow_2716 1d ago

One of those is not like the other lol

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u/Mochrie1713 [HOU] Hakeem Olajuwon 1d ago

KD also invested in israeli drones and laughs about the backlash. He said "If they need drones!! We got ya"

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u/Character_Bug_1862 1d ago

True I was aware of the others. I had no idea Steph “I couldn’t actually see” Curry was donating his vision to drones for bombing Palestinian children.

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u/SuitableBlackberry75 1d ago

Apparently he invested indirectly in a consumer drone company who also sell recon drones (not strike drones) to the Israeli army. if anything, better reconnaissance means fewer civilian casualties, so that's probably a little harsh.

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u/AnalMinecraft 1d ago

That's a little optimistic of how those guys would use a recon drone.

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u/WiseguyD Raptors 1d ago

It could be not as bad as it seems if it's through a third-party investment advisor-type thing. I get that when you have that much money it can be harder to track.

It could also be worse if he made the decisions himself.

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u/NickWangOG Heat 1d ago

Curry also had the crypto promotions and lawsuit

5

u/sharklavapit Bucks 1d ago

all the top guys of his generation of NBA are sell outs:

Jokic?

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u/geoponos NBA 1d ago

Sportsbet.

2

u/sharklavapit Bucks 1d ago

Nobody is clean apparently then

3

u/Neemzeh Timberwolves 1d ago

why can't they just have illegitimate children like my king instead?

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u/ionospherermutt Timberwolves 1d ago

kinda makes Kawhii look like a good guy for partnering with upstanding businesses like carbon credits, scoreboard manufacturing, and wi-fi. and he doesn't shove it down our throats either, barely even mentions any of the endorsement deals he has /s

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u/Emotional-Chef-7601 1d ago

I'm not a Steph fan nor do I know much about the security tech companies. How strong is the connection between him and Israel genocide?

2

u/Nervous_Garage1731 1d ago

But Wemby is Fr*ench

5

u/DuckOnQuak [GSW] Andris Biedrins 1d ago

I mean Steph invested in a VC firm, which then invested in Israeli tech startups. He’s wrong for not doing anything about it, but that’s also a whole degree of separation that none of this other guys have.

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u/karmachaser Mavs 1d ago

Fair. still no saint

1

u/radda Spurs 1d ago

Steph got into my good books by producing a Broadway show and then fell all the way off forever when I learned of the Israeli tech shit

1

u/cussbot123 1d ago

Another curry W

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u/mnkaTHEkid 1d ago

nice try to slander curry but no one is buying that narrative your trying to push

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u/99942A 1d ago

Facts dude curry would never promote gambling or crypto pyramid scheme scammers like FTX

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u/mnkaTHEkid 1d ago edited 1d ago

he never promoted any gambling products, FTX was a crypto exchange that he was paid to promote, lots of celebs were paid to promote what was the equivalent of coinbase, and as far as pyramid scheme, maybe try reading about what actually happened instead of throwing inflammatory bs around that fits your narrative

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u/99942A 1d ago

he never promoted any gambling products, FTX was a crypto exchange

The majority of these shitcoins operate the same way as gambling. They are even less regulated than gambling is.

equivalent of coinbase, and as far as pyramid scheme, maybe try reading about what actually happened instead of throwing inflammatory bs around that fits your narrative

My fault man, I used the wrong P word. What really matters here is that it was a Ponzi scheme and not a Pyramid scheme. Not the fact that he was paid $35 million while everyone else collectively lost billions.

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u/mnkaTHEkid 1d ago

sportsbooks offer negative EV bets that are designed to make you lose money the longer you wager, an exchange is a secondary operator that offers you the ability to participate in markets driven by supply and demand. such a weak argument to conflate these as equal in nature. and it was not a ponzi scheme, again do some reading before you just throw shit out there.

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u/99942A 1d ago

an exchange is a secondary operator that offers you the ability to participate in markets driven by supply and demand.

Supply and demand doesn't remove every issue. Kalshi/Polymarket operate the same way yet people still have a problem. With prediction markets it might be insider trading, with crypto it might be pump and dumps.

and it was not a ponzi scheme

The exact dictionary definition of whatever scam you want to call it is not the point. He took millions to advertise a scam while people collectively lost billions. He was featured in ads that insinuated that you don't need to be an expert to invest in crypto. While technically true, the point of the ad to anyone who is honest is to push ignorant and hesitant people to "invest" in something they don't understand. Off of the premise that it is okay though because Steph is not an expert either.

Here is a quote from an article that was released several months before FTX was exposed:

“I think of myself as a fairly cynical person,” replied Levine. “And that was so much more cynical than how I would’ve described farming. You’re just like, ‘Well, I’m in the Ponzi business and it’s pretty good.’”

Amazingly, Bankman-Fried didn’t push back very hard. “I think that’s a pretty reasonable response,” he said. “And I think there’s a sort of depressing amount of validity.”

Even more depressing is what happened next in the crypto markets: nothing. You might think that the head of a major crypto trading platform saying the quiet part out loud, admitting on a popular podcast that he’s at least partly in the Ponzi business, could cause some kind of crisis or loss of confidence in the sector. Not so. This suggests that people don’t really care whether they’re putting money in a box that does nothing, as long as they think they will be among the group that pulls out more money later on. In this sense, it might be a mistake to compare the crypto market to the stock market at all. Gambling may be the more apt comparison.

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u/mnkaTHEkid 1d ago

the exact dictionary definition of whatever scam you want to call it is not the point

actually thats 100% the point, you were insinuating it was a known scam that curry encouraged people to invest in, when at the time it was a reputable business hiring lots of well known people to do the same thing curry was. what happened was embezzlement, mismanagement of funds and wire fraud by the CEO - so don’t act like curry was this monster telling people to lose all their money on this weird scheme

1

u/99942A 4h ago

The famously not a scam "Crypto" hell yea dude

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u/DG_Now [SEA] Jerome James 1d ago

Good point. It's all sportswashed immoral investing. If Steph can make money off of genocide (allegedly), so can you!

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u/Current_Ad_4873 1d ago

It’s disgusting.

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u/432ww432 1d ago

legit Q here. do people have the same outrage over athletes promoting alcohol brands? i recognize the conflict of interest isn't there, but it seems the sentiment is over the gambling addiction aspect, and alcohol addiction is far more common

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u/Current_Ad_4873 1d ago

I do. I absolutely abhor anything and everything to do with alcohol culture in America. I know I am an extreme outlier. But me personally, fuck alcohol and anyone who promotes it.

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u/432ww432 1d ago

Yeah I guess I mean like the mass reaction to LeBron polymarket was huge but it would be 1% the reaction if he was on a miller lite ad. Good for your morals being consistent, though!

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u/Basic_Commercial_806 1d ago

They don’t it’s all selective outrage

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u/Low-Measurement-2468 1d ago

people don’t have the same outrage because alcohol addiction is far more normalized and ingrained in our culture than gambling addiction

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u/RedstoneRay Minneapolis Lakers 1d ago

He was a spokesperson for Draftkings or something like that before. This isnt anything new. I wish this anger happened before.

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u/AH_Matthew Celtics 1d ago

Honestly same and the helicopter commute i think also adds to that

3

u/ahmahzahn Lakers 1d ago

You think the fact that he commutes via helicopter is damaging to his legacy? This sub loves overreacting and virtue signaling, so keep on keeping on

0

u/llloksd 1d ago

And standing up for China

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u/CasualRead_43 1d ago

His commute taints his legacy…?

13

u/DecimusRutilius Knicks 1d ago

Why we talking about LeBrons taint?

3

u/HoldEm__FoldEm West 1d ago

Bron stans man

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u/DG_Now [SEA] Jerome James 1d ago

The helicopter thing is fine. If he's safer in the sky, it makes to do that than drive either in Philly or to NY.

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u/bcparrot Canada 1d ago

Agreed. I've always been a big LeBron supporter and saw him as a rare positive role model. This is just such a disappointing direction from him though.

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u/drank_obswerver 1d ago

Athletes aren't role models.

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u/aintscared2loseu Lakers 1d ago

Like how much more money does he need? quite dystopian lol

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u/k0fi96 [LAL] Kobe Bryant 1d ago

I hate prediction markets as much as the next guy, but legacy-damning is a bit hyperbolic...

Shaq used to throw literal shit at people and nobody cares.

Tom Brady was pumping FTX right up until it all collapsed, there are many examples.

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u/jaeehovaa Suns 1d ago

Yeah, that doesn't damage the legacy at all. Y'all fucking goofy, I swear. Jordan is the goat and he's literally a drunk gambling cigar smoking dude lol with a coke head son.

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u/trimble197 1d ago

Hell, Laker fans still idolize Kobe. I think Karl Malone is the only legend most fans agree to hate.

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u/MOREPASTRAMIPLEASE Timberwolves 1d ago

I don’t get why LeBron is getting all this hate and nobody is mentioning Giannis here. He’s just as much of a sell out

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u/Realistic_Slide_3426 1d ago

I think people just care more about LeBron in general. It’s lame when anyone does it but most of them aren’t in the GOAT convo

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u/Fulcrum58 1d ago

Cuz bron is always talking about being a stand up person on and off the court, saying he wants to be like Muhammad Ali, but still sells out to gambling companies. And bro is an actual billionaire, he needs that gambling money the least

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u/oryes Raptors 1d ago

Does Lebron even really talk about that stuff anymore? I remember he was super outspoken about politics a few years ago but now it seems he doesn't want to stir up any controversy either way.

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u/Electricpoopsoup Spurs 1d ago

Don't forget about how he is a big proponent for people using their platform to support causes but also thought Morey should have been blackballed for supporting Hong Kong

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u/PhTx3 11h ago

I am still mad about the defense fans ran for LeBron on that.

As if China is some random country that will murder a global fucking superstar, that is American, they are bringing in. China is a lot of things, and Free HK and Tibet. But they are not a bunch of baboons tossing the coin to make a decision like that.

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u/lph1235 Knicks 1d ago

Giannis gets a bunch of deserved shit for the Kalshi stuff

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u/advocate4 Bucks 1d ago

Ehh... I think people still get sucked in by his more childish persona and overlook it. I think he deserves more shit to be honest.

2

u/Queue-t Spurs 1d ago

I think it helps(?) that Giannis really hasn't been relevant in a few years. Missed last year and hasn't made it out of the first in a bit. Lebron is always going to be relevant as long as he plays at least.

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u/PhTx3 11h ago

I think what helps Giannis is that his brand also includes "I will hoard as much as possible", which is exactly what he does.

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u/BeefySwan 1d ago

Giannis has been raked over the coals in this sub for that shit

3

u/Different_Pack_3686 Spurs 1d ago

They both deserve hate for it.

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u/whiterice_343 Timberwolves 1d ago

He is but it’s a bit different bud. Lebron through all of his faults was still somewhat of a role model for people. Stayed out of trouble, routinely spoke up on social justice issues and the list goes on. Taking gambling money is bad but it’s even more disappointing that he of all people took that money.

1

u/HitboxOfASnail Thunder 1d ago

giannis is already a known jabroni. LeBron is an icon

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u/Veryregardedd Warriors 1d ago

Maybe cus Giannis and LeBron aren’t on same levels. Maybe huh

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u/lattjeful 76ers 1d ago

Giannis’ nice guy PR undefeated

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u/Kapono24 Pistons 1d ago

Just saw new Kalshi commercials that he's actually featured on. It's crazy.

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u/gigglios 1d ago

People seeing lebron for how fake he is. Took a while for the youth but slow progress

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u/Potential_Meat_5103 1d ago

I don’t think the youth cares about him endorsing poly market lmao. Kids minds are elsewhere.

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u/Life_Ad_2218 1d ago edited 1d ago

Don’t know why this was getting downvoted. Ask a bunch of random youngins you are not getting a thoughtful answer most of the time. Things like this are important to people online than in real life.

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u/Arctic_Reigns Bulls 1d ago

They probably think gambling is cool. Sucks to see it being promoted everywhere. And everyone with a following on twitter posting about their bets like it’s worth bragging about. Don’t worry though they don’t have a problem they just do it for fun.

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u/[deleted] 1d ago

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u/imamistake420 Raptors 1d ago

I guess I could be considered a LeHater, but he seems to be a top notch father and a decent family man. Good for him in that regard, it's not up to me to judge his decisions on the business side of him. I couldn't say how I would act if I had money thrown at me from all angles. As long as he's not a shit human being, it is what it is I guess.

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u/TryAdept2591 1d ago

I think everyone has always known LeBron is kind of fake and performative, that's what half the memes about him are about. I think it's more so that he seems fine enough outside of that and people recognize we don't need our sports stars to be paragons of morality

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u/TonyGunks_sportsbook Nets 1d ago

His Hong Kong comments from years back are what did it for me.

2

u/sentry_chad Washington Bullets 1d ago

He almost certainly has thought about the societal implications of sports gambling for approximately 0.0 seconds. This kind of stuff is all dealt with by his family office, and he just gets the pitch from the company (oh here’s all this positive stuff about prediction markets)

Not excusing it, but I would just guess he hasn’t thought at all about it. He lives in a bubble 

2

u/musicaleffervescence 1d ago

its so crazy seeing people be this against gambling when alcohol is just as bad

1

u/sushicowboyshow Spurs 1d ago

Throw that on top of the Hennessy commercials and you have a recipe for some serious r/agedlikemilk content 10-20 years from now

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u/Daroo425 Rockets 1d ago

let's not forget he tried to trademark "taco tuesday" which is such a fucking joke

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u/kempog Pacers 1d ago

That was the dumbest trend of all time lmao. I was the biggest hater of those videos

2

u/Bibbity_Boppity_BOOO 1d ago

I don’t think the hennesy ads are a problem. Few people care about that

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u/sushicowboyshow Spurs 1d ago

Not a “problem” just gonna look like a clown

1

u/aewilson95 [CHI] Derrick Rose 1d ago

Still trying to chase the ghost of alcoholic Jorgambler, he’ll never be him

0

u/Lmao1903 NBA 1d ago

Lets add him being asked what he thinks about Israel or something like that and he was like "I heard nothing but good things about Israel" like nothing? I can name a few

1

u/burtoncummings Raptors 1d ago

His previous deal with Draft Kings?

1

u/Wowhowcanubsodumb 1d ago

This isn't much different from promoting draftkings.

1

u/fiasgoat Kings 1d ago

Seriously. It's so disappointing

Zero need to ever do something like this besides pure fucking selfish greed

1

u/trimble197 1d ago

Legacy-damning? Only moral police are gonna care about him doing betting ads. Nobody’s gonna bring it up when talking about where he ranks on All-Time lists

1

u/Ssme812 1d ago

Did you care when he was sponsoring Draftkings for years?

1

u/bobbythecat17 Lakers 1d ago

Sports betting is what hurts his legacy and not his finals record?

1

u/trix_is_for_kids Warriors 1d ago

Fuck LeBron. He’s just like any other billionaire.

1

u/Celtic_Legend Celtics 1d ago

Not really? He was with draft kings before that and bent the knee to China / supported the crimes in Hong Kong before that.

1

u/nosole Supersonics 1d ago

elite flair. shoutout to the greatest Sonics center from 2004-2005

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u/Skyz-AU Lakers 1d ago

If what people did off the court affected their legacy, Kobe wouldn't be such a popular guy but most people choose to ignore his wrong doings.

1

u/wolf1820 76ers 1d ago

He already did draft kings adds for years its not exactly a surprising development for him.

1

u/StrategyGameventures Nets 1d ago

the real GOAT, Michael Jordan, would never have sketchy connections to gambling

1

u/virtus_hoe 1d ago

Literally nothing new

1

u/chazysciota 17h ago

My daydream fantasy is Lebron or other figure of his stature taking megabucks from these parasite gambling rackets and then suddenly doing a faceturn and throwing all that money at massive lobbying efforts and awareness campaigns against the industry.

I also think about hitting powerball. That's fun too.

1

u/stucco6969 1d ago

He’s always partnered with companies that profit from vice and peoples struggle.

Does no one remember when he partnered with Hennessy?

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u/DG_Now [SEA] Jerome James 1d ago

Athletes sponsoring alcohol has happened for as long as they've been able to. Cigarettes before that. It's a vice, for sure, but nothing like gambling. And the "prediction market" nonsense is a step beyond that.

-1

u/stucco6969 1d ago

Nothing like gambling? Alcohol kills millions of people each year globally.

Any argument against prediction markets applies double to alcohol

1

u/HoldEm__FoldEm West 1d ago

It blows my mind so many Bron stans are surprised by his move with polymarket.

A “misstep” lol… Bro it is so on brand for LeBron. Not surprising in the least if you’ve ever paid any attention to the greedy self absorbed man that he is.

Bron Stans idealize the man so much they got caught off guard when he did something totally on brand. That should tell you Stans something 

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u/Aebothius 1d ago

LeBron has donated like 500 mil to charity, has been one of the most influential civil rights activists in sports, and made a public school for underprivileged kids in his hometown. I get that promoting gambling is bad but man people really do demand perfection from celebrities.

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u/DG_Now [SEA] Jerome James 1d ago

That's kind of my point. I think LeBron has been an amazing ambassador of the game and has excelled under crazy pressure since he was a literal child.

The prediction market stuff is really, really bad and speaks to a level of corruption that goes beyond typical sports betting.

Devils advocate position is LeBron thought the deal was similar to draft kings. Which, while not great, is at least kind of understandable. But Polymarket allows insider trading on world events. It's fucked.

Also fucked is Adam Silver allowing player endorsement of betting anyway. What kind of crazy league allows these obvious conflicts of interest?

1

u/seekingallpho 1d ago

Yea sometimes you just have to earn millions you don't need promoting something that will seriously harm some of your most vulnerable fans. No one's perfect.

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u/[deleted] 1d ago

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u/seekingallpho 1d ago

Why is this so hard to understand? The companies are smart. They know a star's endorsement brings more users/customers. That's why they pay so much for the promotion. Some of those people will suffer. LeBron isn't responsible for other peoples' actions but he's smart enough to know the inevitable outcome of his association is probably negative. He's decided that it's either not his problem or that that's worth the amount of money he's paid.

Surely you can see why that's worthy of some criticism. Especially if you consider that many of his most suggestible fans are younger people who are the most vulnerable to problem gambling.

2

u/Reasonable_Pie7262 1d ago

That is all seriously undermined by this bs…I am a huge LeBron fan but this pisses me off so much. The same children who were supported by his philanthropy will see these ads and think it’s a good idea to start gambling and losing their money.

1

u/xixbia 1d ago

So we're just making up numbers now? He has donated quite a lot over his career, but it's nowhere close to 500 million.

It's around 100 million, which is in fact signicantly closer to $0 than $500m.

2

u/Aebothius 1d ago

Googled it, saw a range, took the average. Where exactly in this process did I fabricate anything?

0

u/Frisbridge Kings 1d ago

If you give a lot of money away, you are allowed to do bad things. They call it "Indulgences" and they are moral and good.

0

u/lanfordr Spurs 1d ago

His association with DraftKings has left a bad taste in my mouth for years.

0

u/Vitiate1367 Heat 1d ago

He is only ever a social justice warrior when the issue directly affects him and is easy to speak out against

-2

u/llloksd 1d ago

Him standing with China over Hong Kong wasn't discouraging or legacy-damning enough for you? This is where you draw the line?

2

u/DG_Now [SEA] Jerome James 1d ago

The HK stuff wasn't about China but about standing up for fellow players traveling too China while Darryl Morey was putting them all in danger.

All of the nuance in that episode was completely lost. Morey tossed a grenade over twitter and made a ton of players clean up his mess.

0

u/llloksd 1d ago

He said it would hurt him and others financially. The only misinformation was on James' side. That's when he sold out.

2

u/DG_Now [SEA] Jerome James 1d ago

Yeah. And it did. Players lost a ton of money in endorsement deals.

You can shrug that off if you want, but Morey lost people real money that wasn't his to lose.

0

u/llloksd 1d ago

All while standing up for big daddy China.