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Jayson Tatum recently earned some praise for his comments regarding sports betting. With more and more fans getting involved in betting on their favorite games, teams, and players, the topic of sports gambling has been a hot debate topic. As we have seen in the past across a wide range of sports, sometimes fans take their frustration out on athletes when their bets fail to cash.
This has sparked widespread discussions about how sports betting has changed the world of sports, and the NBA. In the past, other players have weighed in on the topic, indicating that they're tired of hearing fans mention their bets and their parlays.
On the flip side, however, when Jayson Tatum hears fans call out their bets to him, he feels bad when he fails to live up to their betting hopes. While speaking to media members this week, he fielded questions about the situation, indicating the things he hears from fans is different from when he first got into the league.
Fans, of course, were quick to react to the quote from Jayson Tatum as well.
“Fans yell sh** all the time, shoot one more three, get one more rebound, get 25 before the half is over… I guess I do feel bad when I don't hit people's parlays. I dont want them to lose money.”
Looking at other NBA players who have discussed sports betting in the NBA in addition to Jayson Tatum
As previously mentioned, Jayson Tatum isn't the only NBA player, or NBA star, to weigh in on the relationship between sports betting and the NBA. With more and more US states legalizing sports betting by the month, more fans are getting involved, which only further amplifies the shift in the NBA-gambling relationship.
Gambling as a whole has been a part of sports for decades, however, the key difference is the accessability thanks to mobile devices. That, and the fact that individuals ages 18-21 can get involved thanks to widespread legalization has seemingly created a shift in sports.
In the past, Kyrie Irving has notably weighed in on the situation, explaining that he feels as though sports betting has taken away the purity from the game. As he indicated, there's a big difference between a diehard fan supporting their team, and someone who simply wants their parlay to cash.
Irving, of course, isn't the only player. In addition, Malik Monk has also weighed in on the situation. In a post made on social media in 2023, Monk simply wrote that he doesn't care about anyone's parlays.
The sentiment was echoed by his teammate, Kevin Huerter who replied to the tweet, simply writing, "Respectfully" in a tweet that has since been deleted. In addition, other players such as Monte Morris have also weighed in, expressing that they too feel as though gambling has taken away the purity of the game.
Whether or not anything changes in the future, only time will tell.
Guess the Lakers players!
