NBA tells sportsbooks to pull manipulation-prone prop bets
The league has ordered DraftKings, FanDuel and other partners to scrap several player-prop markets ahead of the new season, citing manipulation risk and player harassment.
The NBA has instructed its sportsbook partners to withdraw a set of prop bets it regards as vulnerable to manipulation, including parlays built from unders on a single player's statistics.
According to EGR, the directive was issued in a memo sent to partners such as DraftKings and FanDuel before the 20 October season start and was first reported by ESPN.
The league said the move is also intended to shield players from gambling-related harassment.
The markets affected are parlays combining unders on one player's statistics, bets on who wins the opening tip-off, wagers on players missing specific shots, and unders on players projected to play fewer than 12 minutes.
NBA executive vice-president of media distribution and partnerships Scott Kaufman-Ross told ESPN the league was trying to balance two competing risks, saying there is tension between cutting problematic bet types and pushing bettors toward illegal operators, and that the current approach reflects where the league believes that balance sits.
A DraftKings spokesperson said the operator backs the league's approach and will keep working with it on game integrity, including through limits on certain betting markets, and added that its Code of Responsible Engagement matches the NBA's position on harassment of athletes, coaches or officials.
The restrictions follow a run of integrity cases in the league. Former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter pleaded guilty in July 2024 to wire fraud conspiracy, after associates placed bets on his performances using information he supplied.
That October, the NBA had already limited betting on players on two-way or 10-day contracts and barred props on turnovers, fouls and missed free throws.
Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was investigated by the league in early 2025 over unusual betting patterns on his games and was cleared at the time.
Rozier was later taken into custody by federal investigators in October 2025, in a case that also named Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups; Rozier has pleaded not guilty and faces trial in February 2027.
Detroit Pistons guard Malik Beasley was separately reported in June 2025 to be the subject of a federal gambling investigation tied to NBA games.