NBA partner books told to drop tip-off bets, under parlays

The NBA has told its authorised sportsbook partners to stop offering several types of bets this season, including parlays that combine unders on the same player's statistics, bets on the opening tip and under bets on players expected to play fewer than 12 minutes. The changes were set out in a league memo to operators this week, first reported by ESPN. They apply to the sportsbooks the league works with, a group that includes DraftKings, FanDuel and Fanatics. The regular season starts next week.

What comes off the board

According to the league's letter as reported by CNBC and Sports Business Journal, and ESPN's report as carried by iGamingToday, authorised operators should no longer offer:

• Same-player under parlays. Parlays that combine unders on one player's statistics, which the memo calls "low likelihood, high payout" bets.
• Alternate under lines. Bettors can no longer set their own "alternate under" number on player props, Sports Business Journal reports. An alternate under sits below the main line and pays more if it lands.
• "First-of" markets. The winner of the opening tip, and which player scores the first basket or records another first stat of a game.
• Missed-shot bets. Bets on a player missing specific shots.
• Short-minutes unders. Under bets on players expected to play fewer than 12 minutes in a game.

Single unders on player props are not banned outright. Sports Business Journal reports that the league stopped short of that after operators argued it would push bettors to offshore sites and prediction-market apps. "There's a balance between ensuring that we are removing problematic bet types but also ensuring that we don't just move activity into the illegal market," NBA executive vice president Scott Kaufman-Ross told ESPN, according to iGamingToday.

Why these bets

CNBC notes that these bets can raise integrity concerns because a single player can influence the outcome. A player cannot easily guarantee a big night, but missing shots or leaving the floor early is within a player's control, which is why unders draw particular scrutiny. Stacking several unders on the same player in one parlay turns that into a long-odds ticket with a large payout, the "low likelihood, high payout" type the league describes.

The NBA has cut markets before. In earlier seasons it barred bets on fouls, turnovers and missed free throws, and under props on players with two-way and 10-day contracts, Sports Business Journal notes. CNBC reports that the changes follow a series of gambling-related cases involving NBA figures, including former players Jontay Porter and Terry Rozier. Porter admitted in court to taking himself out of games early to benefit bettors. Rozier has denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty.

Monitoring and training

A separate memo to teams, from NBA executive vice president Dan Spillane and reported by CNBC, says the league has built an internal AI-based platform that analyses basketball data, injury reports, social media information on player availability and individual betting data to flag suspicious activity. The same memo says each team will receive in-person training on sports betting, CNBC reports.

What changes for bettors

In US states with legal sports betting, the NBA's partner sportsbooks should stop listing these markets on NBA games this season. The NBA estimates that its authorised operators account for more than 99% of the US betting market, iGamingToday reports, citing ESPN; Sports Business Journal puts their share at about 95% of the state-regulated market.

This is an agreement between the league and its authorised sportsbook partners, not a state law or regulation, and it applies to those partners.

Related coverage: Louisiana's conditional extension for DraftKings, New York's proposed ban on AI-personalised promotions, FanDuel's 50-cent bet fee in Illinois and the CFTC's view that sportsbook bets are not swaps.

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