[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…”
Sure its easy for Victor to say that, he has $38.5m in career earnings so far.
Compare that to someone like Lebron, who has only made $581m in career earnings, and you see how this is a more challenging ethical question.
How else is Lebron supposed to commute via helicopter everyday from his penthouse in NYC to his practice facility in Philly?
He got a family to feed man. Those tacos don’t grow on trees.
Hey man I have it on good authority that Kawhi planted at least 5 taco trees for aspiration
Poor Bronny is struggling out there
Yeah. He even told the media the other day that his name is actually LeBron. Poor kid
So true! And only ONE of his children is making a guaranteed $2M this year. Basically still a dependent.
Theres a tuesday almost every week man, its crazy expensive
Whole thread is gold but this FINISHED ME 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Taco Tuesday aint cheap
It was so disgusting to make Taco Tuesday his catchphrase for a couple months and immediately forget about it after court stroke down his trademark application.
I mean, they grow on fields. The corn used for the tortillas I mean.
People forget, it’s not like his family gets an NBA Salary too
Well one of his kids do, but not all of them!
[removed]
Poor LeBron can’t afford to build his own teleport machine so he has to settle for a helicopter 😪
No BrondLe-Fly please. That would be a hell of a plot twist in his career though, wouldn’t it?
Someone get him some law runes! (Been too long, those were the ones used in teleport spells right?)
“I didn’t leave my family behind to not sponsor betting services”
Waiting for the Kalshi and Polymarket bets about whether LeBron is staying the night in Philly or NY
Install a zipline?
LeCopter
Well wemby saves substantial money by just flapping his long arms and fly
Seems like he is going to spend more on helicopter rides than the 76ers will be paying him.
That shit is so wild to me. Ride a copter once? Sure maybe. Riding one daily? Fuck that, I’d be terrified.
I’m sure 76ers included that helo transpo on the low low or for free.
[deleted]
With endorsements, LeBron barely even clears $1,000,0000 per game of basketball he plays.
Can we get him a GoFundMe at least? Schroeder was absolutely correct with his comparison of the NBA to modern day slavery
That was technically Dennis Schröder.
You’re right, I mixed up my clowns
You had me in the first half
Are these numbers right? Wembys career earnings being 7 percent of brons seems incredibly low for LeBron
3 years in the league vs 23 years is actually 13% so Wemby has averaged half of Lebron’s earnings per year.
It does seem low if you consider Wemby has only ever been on a rookie contract, but the increasing cap and inflation mean a lot of star players drafted post 2020 might earn more than Lebron even with 15 year careers only
When Lebron moved to the Heat after 7 years, the max were something in the range of $19-20m.
Lebron made 13 million in his first 3 years, 35% of Wemby. Wemby will pass him in his early 30’s
It’s worth keeping in mind that \(1 million 20 years ago is roughly \)1.6 million today so those millions in his first decade in the league aren’t apples to apples comparisons to Wemby’s millions now.
If you track general inflation, NBA Overall salaries or profit sharing, in terms of overall league revenue and sports in general, have risen past general inflation. It’s a very simple supply-and-demand thing. If you look at it, there are the same number of teams there were 20 years ago, but a lot more people. There is a static amount of basketball as a product, but with growing demand, as opposed to other things, say, apples, where, yes, there’s been overall inflation, but we produce more apples than we did 20 years ago, even though we consume more. Basketball has actually been increasing faster than general inflation.
Contracts have gotten really large as the NBA earns more and more money. Kobes 20 year career as a star has earned less in contracts than Damien Lillard
He’s due for a big pay raise soon, his projected earnings for his current contract will exceed $300M by the time he’s 28.
Wemby was making \(13M as a rookie. It took LeBron's first 3 years combined to make \)13M and he was making $16M/yr in Miami which are years 8-11 for him.
Then that Mike Conley contract happened and the league contracts took off
Is Mike Conley to blame for the inflation/cost of living crisis?
Steph recently became the first player to top $600 million in career earnings
LeBron’s contracts, from spotrac:
Rookie deal 3/$12.9m (or 4⁄18.788m)
$5.8m option
4/$60.4m rookie scale extension
6/$110m in sign and trade
2/$42.2m Max (1+1, resigned next year for:)
2/$46.9m max
3/$99.857m max (2+1, declined, went to La for:)
4/$153.3m Max
2/$85.655m Max
2/$99m Max
2⁄101.355m Max
2/$7.946m minimum
Technically, there were a couple of “less than max” in LA, but only by a few thousand to keep the team under the 2nd apron, but every contract until this one with Philly was the Max allowed by the CBA, so he made as much as he could every time, and still is “only” at $581,375,548 career earnings.
If he had come in 10 years later, he’d probably be the first billion dollar earnings player, but the salary cap his rookie year was only $43,840,000… which he made more than that per year 3 different contracts.
This season it’s $164,961,000 before aprons and cutlery gets involved…
Quadrupled in amount over his career
I just looked them up. It does make sense since the contracts get larger the more years in the league, and rookie contracts are scaled smaller. Wembys upcoming near max extension will catch the number up a bit.
Time value of money
that’s salary
had me in the first half
LeBron wants to own a team, that 580m is nothing
Not defending him btw, gambling is fucking awful and it’s crazy how normalized it is but he clearly wants to own a team and is expanding his portfolio to do that, investing and everything
I have to imagine that dream is all but dead. The values have of NBA franchises has increased so much. LeBron can take every penny he’s made from his NBA contracts, Endorsements, etc.. and still not have enough. I guess he can join one of those “groups”
I don’t think the dream is dead at all, LeBron a billionaire and adding to his wealth consistently through investments, endorsements and shit
You don’t need 10b liquid to buy a team, like you said with those groups, other investors he can be the face of it and start by owning a significant % and increase it
I agree but think time is running out for him. There are over 3k billionaires in the world about 1k in the USA. It’s will get increasingly harder for him as these numbers sky rocket. But fractional ownership or him being the face for some group is always an option if he doesn’t tank his public good will. Much different world than Jordan came up in just as a compassion with the ownership and such.
surely the 13 million he got from polymarket will make a difference in his pursuit
It won’t hurt, many players have turned money like that from investments into way more
Anyway just explaining the reasoning for it, 13m a year even for LeBron is not a tiny amount for what like a few social media posts that some intern will do
It is absolutely a tiny amount for a billionaire
Trust me I get and agree with you but technically that 13 doesn’t hurt.
You say it like he’s building schools with that money lmao. The guy is a money-hungry and a greedy idiot who happens to be an absolutely fantastic basketball player with crazy work ethic.
https://ipromiseschool.akronschools.com/
>You say it like he’s building schools with that money lmao.
??? Nothing they said made it seem like Lebron is being charitable what are you talking about
This whole conversation is about the morality of it lol. Means don’t necessarily justify ends just because you have a desire to own a very expensive asset.
I agree it doesn’t, i’m explaining the reasoning for it
People have goals, morally it can be wrong but that’s clearly his goal
Sure. That’s self evident though. Even if it wasn’t a sports team it’d be another thing. Some people just want to be a billionaire or “build an empire” or whatever the justification.
Everyone has “a reason.” The point is whether your reason is morally justifiable in context.
Man there are so many ways you can make money if you are filthy rich like this. Obviously investing a little on the obvious stocks gets you a nice % profit by default but these guys are in circles where they can find some bullshit to make even higher ROI. It’s obvious the guy just couldn’t care less about morality or whether its ethical to farm some free money on this gambling business.
Given the costs today, I wonder what team LeBron is even going to be able to afford, outside of being a symbolic front man as part of a group
If only Latrell Sprewell could have promoted sports betting companies while he was in the NBA. Maybe he would have been able to afford feeding his family.
Had me in the first part
Yall don’t know. Wemby unfortunately shares another trait with a formerly beloved 2-way star the Spurs had years ago.
Wemby’s got some BS endorsement deal from Fred’s Fish Fry.
Finally someone who understands that LeBron is poor
Don’t you know that the Euro is worth more than the dollar? That’s why Wemby’s \(38.5m is worth more than lebron’s \)581m. It makes sense for him to need to partner up with these markets if you really think about it. His wife’s best friend still flies coach, after all
how are you this stupid he uses spotify with ads. I dont and i poor
Doesn’t he know LeKalshi James has kids ? Those are expensive , especially when one of them is a pro athlete. Those camps ain’t cheap
Lebron can also call just about any company on the planet and say he wants to partner with them. And he still chose a gambling platform
It’s not challenging when LeBron’s net worth is $1.4 billion.
lebron is billionaire.
Wemby doesn’t have grown ass children to feed.
You are taking food right out of Bronny’s mouth if he doesn’t sign that deal.
/s
Those poor old billionaires need all the help they can get
LePoverty
U bastard 😂
Oh no, let’s throw a pity party for the billionaire. Gambling is an addiction for people, and it is run ad nauseum on broadcasts, streaming, and podcasts.
I don’t think you’re understanding the gravity of Lebron’s circumstances that OP is trying to communicate
Shots fired at LeDraftKing
he’s LePolyMarket PoLeMarket now
he’s both actually
LeBron’s deal with draft kings expired this summer. That’s why he’s a brand ambassador for PolyMarket now
PoLeamorous?
I saw someone say PoLeMarket the whore and that’s what sticks for me now
disgrace.
PoLeMarket*
PoLeAssassin, really
PhiLeMarket
LeKalshi
Whoosh
poLeMarket
Also Giannis who is a part owner of Kalshi
He deserves more shit than he has gotten for it too
Lebron signing with Polymarket has absolved all other NBA players of their sins.
Anything LeBron does overshadows all apparently. Even Jordan who I believe has a major stake in one of the sites
The greekalshi freak
Don’t edit your comment. Shits fired everywhere
😉 ☠️
NOOOOOOOOooooooooo
Big Hyrox Energy
Ewww.
Get the LeBrain coat.
What a pathetic move from LeBron. A billion isn’t enough for him I guess
Damn this is better than Mao Zebron
Elite banter.
He’s with Polymarket now. Polymarket is pretty much giving everyone millions to promo the app. They’re even sponsoring almost every podcast now.
the man above gifted him so he can advertise gambling🙏
Remember when he refused to comment on the Hong Kong democracy protests, other than to criticize supporters, while sticking his nose in a variety of other political issues? He’s a businessman.
Na. LeBron is poly with anything that makes him money.
Child labor? Who cares
Gambling? Who cares
Alcohol? Who cares
Black lives matter? Only because I’m forced to say something. Otherwise, who cares
Is he can activist? Only if he gets paid
Thank you Wemby for actually having morals and common sense.
imagine taking a paycut and then not immediately partnering with a sports betting company.
LeBron is just trying to pull himself up by his bootstraps and make ends meet out here, it’s tough for billionaires in this economy.
You wouldn’t understand how expensive it is to be a commuter in this economy!
But really, I don’t see how he can accept it. It’s a useless partnership with an immoral company, he’s probably top 3 most influential athletes of the last decades, he’s a fucking billionaire, who in their right mind would accept fucking Polymarket after taking a paycut?
I think money is a mental illness
Oligarchs buy sneakers too
He’s just like all of us. He gets angry when he locks his car in his helicopter.
(that’s an old joke, and I can’t remember the comic)
Someone has to pay for the daily helicopter rides
Man’s on the vet min he’s gotta pay for chartered helicopter flights somehow
I feel comfortable with a blanket “if you commute by helicopter, you have too much money” policy.
“I have a family to feed!”
The price of helicopter fuel is crazy! I don’t blame him
Ethical endorsements.
gotta pay for those chopper rides somehow!
Let’s also not forget the sacrifice that Giannis has made.
Those daily helicopter rides aren’t cheap
Fun Fact: The right to invest in gambling companies was something that the NBAPA negotiated for in the last CBA negotiations. They accepted the 2nd apron for this.
NBAPA got bent over in that negotiation room.
That’s fucking insane.
There might be a relationship between this gambling infused CBA and guys like Christian Braun and Jalen Duren getting preposterous contract offers.
He didn’t take a pay cut
Didn’t he take a 25% max instead of 30% if he wins major awards? Very much could have negotiated for an extra potential 50 mil through the contract.
Lmao all-time bad optics
Helicopters are expensive
So refreshing to see honestly.
Yea the nba feels like a dirty casino with all the betting
Wemby is so based. Another tweet from another Spurs reporter said:
Wembanyama says that he has turned down big endorsement deals in the past that were not aligned with his values: “Obviously, we earn millions and millions. This is not our biggest strength. Our biggest strength is inspiring, and we can inspire in a good way or a bad way. I want to inspire in a good way. That’s the strongest thing I can do.”
He also called out the league for continuing to celebrate Karl Malone
lol for now
He’s in the upper echelon of earners though too, need to keep that in mind. There’s no excuse for the other star players on huge deals to be doing gambling ads, but I have a bit more leniency for the guys on minimum deals or something. But I guess those guys aren’t even wanted for gambling ads so I dunno what I’m even saying.
Yea poor guys like LeBron need that gambling bag. Get off your high horse Wemby!
Don’t forget Giannis
Gotta finance those helicopter rides
I think Wemby rides a giraffe
do you think wemby has a high high horse?
Yeah. Most likely requires a Clydesdale to commute to and from work.
Bro, minimum deals are a 1.25m for rookies and 3.6m for veterans a year. It’s not like they’re going to die of hunger anytime soon. Nobody should be sponsoring shit that destroys lives.
Also how many people on minimums are getting these sponsor deals?
But to be fair to the guy on minimum … I wouldn’t hate taking what you can. Like 10-15% of players play just 1 seasons, and another 10-15% just 2 seasons.
Yet no one bats an eye that LeBron and Steph are sponsored by liquor brands.
I agree and disagree. They definitely lean on these famous faces. I don’t care.
I do think it’s a bit too loud. The game doesn’t need a gambling insight pre-game section. Or that ridiculous BetMGM string of commercials with a zillion celebrities.
But Adam Silver took the checks and here we are. As basketball fans we haven’t really held the league accountable many times over so we get what we deserve in a sense.
Combined with a product that has a large youth following (sports), combined with how idolized some of these guys are by some of these boneheaded kids, I definitely agree it isn’t healthy to promote.
It’s just a negative behavior with a potentially addictive outcome. If nicotine and porn are fine (and I think they are with restrictions), gambling is fine.
Losing your last 20 dollars to an app every time you get money isn’t a problem with the app.
Why is it up to the fans to hold the league accountable?
The app is designed and optimized toward that goal though. Like nicotine, the profit comes from creating addicts. Regular users are incidental.
You mean those guys who earn more in a year than most people in their lifetimes?
Coulda kept this in the drafts bro
yeah probably
Odds are min deal guys aren’t gonna be getting big deals with gambling companies. Like no one is paying a 2nd round pick in his 3rd year about to be out of the league a shit ton of money to do some ad reads. But if you are Giannis or Lebron or guys like that, I think KD might have had something similar not sure, its like you already made more money than you’ll ever spend, you really gotta do this too? That money is probably going to be spent on flying back and forth Philly to NY as well because apparently Philly is that shit
No excuse for other star players or the league/franchises to promote gambling
I have a bit more leniency for the guys on minimum deals or something
I don’t, they’re still making millions, but it’s besides the point, because minimum contract players aren’t being approached by Draft Kings to be reps.
Nah fuck that even bottom rung guys make $800k take home. That makes them wealthier than 99.99% of all humans alive. If that kind of wealth doesn’t secure your integrity then you never had any.
I want to hate him (and I still think I’m capable) purely in the sports rivalry sense, but, every time he speaks on a hot button issue I usually agree with him and respect his use of his platform to say it.
He’s an educated European ball player, and he hasn’t been Stateside long enough to ruin his morale compass. I would expect nothing less from him.
In dark times we can always use a beacon to light the way. Shine bright young Wemby.
@ LEBRON JAMESON
But but they offered the other players a lot of money to promote it. It’s not like players can get by on an NBA salary these days.
But people will still make him villain #1 come playoff time
I hope it stays this way
Reverse Anthony Edwards
Dudes an incredible role model. Pure and simple
It’s crazy how rare it is for a prominent athlete to come out against widespread gambling.
He is on cover of 2k and as a company they are no better than some gambling. The mut type modes are not great for kids as that is like gambling busting packs.
Came here to say this. Incredibly rare traits.
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.
Dang. I was tired of him after his immaturity last playoffs but now he’s already more of a man than both Bron and Giannis together. It’s refreshing to see a player who understands that making millions is already very comfortable and he shouldn’t need to ever work in his life besides playing ball. Nobody needs more than that.
turning \(5 to \)100 is a bad thing? in this age of economy?
Eh not really. Wemby is doing himself and society a disservice by not supporting gambling companies. Whether you like it or not, these companies are on the right side of history
Clarify?
what is this bullshit comment? are you mad he says he doesn’t support extremists and isn’t endorsing that crook Le Pen? or are you just slandering him cus he had the balls to speak out against ICE?
Care to elaborate?
You going to elaborate or
He’s a dirty ass player. Grow up
Wah wah wah
Incredibly telling that he’s in the absurd minority of players with that mindset.
Giannis sports betting arc hurt worse then any betrayal 💔💔💔 im praying more get on the Wemby wave.
Loved Gianni’s, and agree. Just disgusting decision. LeBron too. Greed is insane in wealthy people
Jokic also promotes for SportsBet in Serbia. Just calling it out in case some people are not aware he advertises that shit as well
Crazy how phones still autocorrect “Giannis” to “Gianni’s”. As a whole, I gotta imagine Giannis is typed way more often
I just don’t care to correct it every time. It is frustrating.
It’s such a shame, I really liked watching Giannis but this is just greed beyond belief. Could’ve got money from basically any brand associated with sports
Giannis’s decision makes some sense. He grew up in poverty and is doing everything he can to secure generational bank.
Wemby grew up in an upper middle class family in France…. completely different mindset.
Giannis has generational wealth. He earned $338,006,542 over his career, and that’s not including any endorsements.
So because Giannis grew up poor, its okay for him to to suck the blood of other poor people now?
He’s 13 years into his career. Hes a multi millionaire already.
There’s no “mindset” excuse for it. Its them plainly displaying they dont give a shit about the fans really or the wider wellbeing of people. Gambling is a cancer.
This logic is toxic.
Sports betting preys on poverty, he should know better.
he’s not infested with american propaganda
Do you think the US is the only place with sports betting?
no but it’s infested with capitalism and more pervasive than other countries. the incessant need to get “a bag” is very much an american thing
No but its certainly more pervasive among western nations than any other. Moreso to do with the absurd influence capital has in politics
Is that true? Is there a league-wide survey that I missed?
I think most players dislike gambling. But they like money more than they dislike gambling.
I’m sure most of us would be like them, were we in their shoes
Not even just the minority, but nobody is really willing to speak up about it either. Like, I actually can’t think of the last player to denounce gambling companies.
Even amongst normies, most dont care
It’s not players it’s everyone. Zach Lowe promotes FanDuel as a sponsor yet says he never gambles.
You would probably also take the extra cash.
Finally a superstar who’s speaking out on these predatory sports betting companies
First in NBA, but Mbappé spoke out on this as well. Both awesome to see considering how prominent they are in their respective sports.
It should be a stain on your reputation if you promote this shit.
the French are about to come save us again
Always were 👨🚀 🔫 👩🚀
The French have interesting morals, but they definitely have them.
Thank you Marquis De Lafayette
Mbappé has said he won’t do sports gambling or junk food ads. Respect that a lot
I mean at some point, how much money is enough money.
I’m curious what his peers think about his mindset since some of them are doing ads for the betting companies
So do we still hate Victor or do we like him again? This guy is a rollercoaster of PR.
Good things he did: spoke out against predatory sports betting companies
Bad things he did: showed emotion and competitiveness instead of doing the nonchalant gimmick
didn’t he elbow some dude in the face intentionally somewhat recently and everyone was mad at him lol. i don’t watch the NBA so all my NBA news is from this subreddit when threads his front page
like he had some buddha character arc, then he was out there doing wild shit on the court, now he’s out here as the bulwark against sports gambling
ESPN about to crucify him with their coverage this season
“After the break, did Victor Wembanyama blow the Finals? We compiled all of his lowlights on the sports’ biggest stage. That’s after a word from Draftkings.”
“Also, do we need to remind you he is French?” /s
Oh no, anyways
People still watch ESPN?
I can barely call ESPN a sports network anymore anyway, so fuck em. It’s just a channel with 30 different variations of Pat McAfee and Stephen A saying ludicrous bullshit designed to draw in ratings from people who can’t navigate a McDonald’s play place.
Fuck ESPN for their bullshit with Balmer
Respect, Wemby is young so his morals haven’t been jaded yet. Hope he can maintain that
He’s young enough to have seen the impact degenerate gambles have on athletes from the beginning of his career. And the ridiculous things these gamblers do/say when the athletes don’t hit their prop bets
Well… unlike LeBron, he didn’t come out of the gate saying he wants to become a billionaire and then making the likes of Jay-Z his “big bro”. Wemby will be okay. I hope for more like him.
Older people have failed when the youth have better morals. Instead of growing older and wiser they simply become ignorant and evil.
W Wemby. Love seeing a high profile athlete like him take this stance. Sports betting is a fucking cancer on society and it’s really gross when the players and leagues promote it.
I really hope sports betting goes the way of Tobacco where they aren’t allowed to advertise on tv at some point. It’s a scourge on society.
It’s insane that players are even allowed to do it lmao
And then they’ll complain when fans heckle them about their money lines and parlays. Like, you’re literally pushing fans to develop this addiction
Exactly. Huge conflict of interest but corruption for the rich is the new norm it seems
Is it when the leagues themselves are in bed with these companies
Wemby has my vote as the next GOAT (my votes don’t count).
GOAT is whoever you want it to be, so your vote always counts queen
Bill Russell, then, now, forever.
Unironically he’s one of the three acceptable answers
Ok your vote doesn’t count
Mehmet Okur has my vote as the next GOAT (my vote apparently does count)
Remember when he got that 4⁄70 contract that everyone was freaking out about. Now we got a possible generational fumble coming if Duren doesn’t sign… King Okur knew. Dennis Schroder didn’t… we’ll see how Jalen does.
We’re at the point where if he retired next season, we’d probably still look at him as the what-if GOAT. Like the shit he did over a four year span was unprecedented and I’ll be talking about him for the rest of my life.
You wanna bet on it?
Excellent take from Vic, and honestly shame on the ones that do it. Shit is an absolute menace.
Seeing someone like LeBron endorse not just sports betting (Draftkings) but also prediction markets was sad to see from a guy w/ his wealth. These guys get a whole ton of money upfront and then even more money off the backend (revshare) w/ people who use his code so he’s basically hoping people develop a gambling problem or lose a shit ton of their own money.
The gambling industry desperately needs stricter guidelines like the alcohol industry when it comes to advertising. Right now you get spammed with gambling ads pregame, during the game, and after the game and the worst part of all it is they make it seem so easy and then there’s the whole unethical side of it where they use streamers playing w/ fake balances.
Shame on everyone BUT especially Lebron Who is worth a Billion. When is enough..enough? Jesus man
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.
Just greedy as shit when you can literally just be greedy in several other ways lol
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.
all the top guys of his generation of NBA 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
etc etc etc
Jokic is affiliated with SportsBet as well
I’ve been to Serbia, they really enjoy gambling
But Kalshi isn’t betting. It’s predictions! /s
One of those is not like the other lol
KD also invested in israeli drones and laughs about the backlash. He said “If they need drones!! We got ya”
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.
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.
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?
Jokic?
Sportsbet.
Curry also had the crypto promotions and lawsuit
why can’t they just have illegitimate children like my king instead?
But Wemby is Fr*ench
nice try to slander curry but no one is buying that narrative your trying to push
Facts dude curry would never promote gambling or crypto pyramid scheme scammers like FTX
Good point. It’s all sportswashed immoral investing. If Steph can make money off of genocide (allegedly), so can you!
It’s disgusting.
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
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.
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!
people don’t have the same outrage because alcohol addiction is far more normalized and ingrained in our culture than gambling addiction
He was a spokesperson for Draftkings or something like that before. This isnt anything new. I wish this anger happened before.
Honestly same and the helicopter commute i think also adds to that
And standing up for China
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
His commute taints his legacy…?
Why we talking about LeBrons taint?
Bron stans man
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.
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.
Athletes aren’t role models.
Like how much more money does he need? quite dystopian lol
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
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
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.
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
Giannis gets a bunch of deserved shit for the Kalshi stuff
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.
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.
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
Giannis has been raked over the coals in this sub for that shit
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.
They both deserve hate for it.
giannis is already a known jabroni. LeBron is an icon
Maybe cus Giannis and LeBron aren’t on same levels. Maybe huh
Just saw new Kalshi commercials that he’s actually featured on. It’s crazy.
Giannis’ nice guy PR undefeated
People seeing lebron for how fake he is. Took a while for the youth but slow progress
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.
I don’t think the youth cares about him endorsing poly market lmao. Kids minds are elsewhere.
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.
I mean I still give him a TON of credit for growing up with no father in his life, and having the attention of the world on him when he was like 16, and somehow never even once straying outside the law, having any sort of sex or drug scandal, staying with his HS girlfriend, pretty much being the most boring dude ever despite having all the money and access to temptation in the world. Like yeah a lot of the decisions he has been making lately really suck, and it’s fair to criticize him, but I’d still say on the whole he has to be one of the most well-adjusted sports megastars of all time given how many different ways it all could have gone wrong.
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.
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
His Hong Kong comments from years back are what did it for me.
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.
Hell, Laker fans still idolize Kobe. I think Karl Malone is the only legend most fans agree to hate.
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
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.
Throw that on top of the Hennessy commercials and you have a recipe for some serious r/agedlikemilk content 10-20 years from now
I don’t think the hennesy ads are a problem. Few people care about that
Not a “problem” just gonna look like a clown
…k
Still trying to chase the ghost of alcoholic Jorgambler, he’ll never be him
let’s not forget he tried to trademark “taco tuesday” which is such a fucking joke
That was the dumbest trend of all time lmao. I was the biggest hater of those videos
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
His previous deal with Draft Kings?
This isn’t much different from promoting draftkings.
Seriously. It’s so disappointing
Zero need to ever do something like this besides pure fucking selfish greed
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
Did you care when he was sponsoring Draftkings for years?
Sports betting is what hurts his legacy and not his finals record?
He’s always partnered with companies that profit from vice and peoples struggle.
Does no one remember when he partnered with Hennessy?
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.
Nothing like gambling? Alcohol kills millions of people each year globally.
Any argument against prediction markets applies double to alcohol
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
its so crazy seeing people be this against gambling when alcohol is just as bad
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.
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?
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.
Totally forgot it’s LeBron’s fault personally that people are gambling addicts. How could LeBron do this?
If you’re looking at an ad and go ‘wow LeBron likes this, I gotta do it!’ then you’re probably fucked regardless
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.
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.
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.
Googled it, saw a range, took the average. Where exactly in this process did I fabricate anything?
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.
His association with DraftKings has left a bad taste in my mouth for years.
He is only ever a social justice warrior when the issue directly affects him and is easy to speak out against
Him standing with China over Hong Kong wasn’t discouraging or legacy-damning enough for you? This is where you draw the line?
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.
He said it would hurt him and others financially. The only misinformation was on James’ side. That’s when he sold out.
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.
No one outside of up tight Redditors would ever have an opinion that promoting a gambling company would be legacy ruining LMAO
I spent the better part of the last 20 years cheering against the Spurs
This kid is awesome
agree, him and that other one, our one
Harper?
Common Wemby W
I want to hate him so bad but his off court presence just makes it impossible. Other than being slightly performative he just says and does all the right things
Damn you and your W takes Wemby
My ethical GOAT
Alright that’s +100 legacy points brother
Thank fuck the next face of the league seems to actually be a decent guy
I will never like the Spurs but they can’t make me hate you Wemby
He has massive balls you have to give it to him.
Wemby the ethical king
Despite his occasional on the court antics and playing for the Spurs, I am a huge fan of Victor.
Going against sports gambling makes me like him even more.
Preaching to the choir, but the whole fascination and obsession with sports gambling has become a major travesty in the sports world.
I love sports for what it is, not what it could earn me.
I think sports betting thrives on desperation. If it becomes more and more prevalent it’s a sign that more and more people are willing to give it a go, and it’s not just for fun, those companies do not make money on the people that bet 10 bucks a year, they get money at the expense of addicts.
And those in charge of managing the partnerships between athletes, teams and leagues and gambling companies should stick their heads out of their asses and grow a pair of balls.
I don’t know what the situation is like in the US but for example in Italy it is impossible to watch a sports match without being subject to literal dozens of betting companies advertisements (disguised as “news” websites to avoid any law). It is an emergency and there is absolutely no will to stop it
It’s become omnipresent, it’s impossible to avoid if you barely watch sports or sports related content on YouTube.
It’s vile, raises immense ethical and sportsmanship concerns. It’s one of the things in popular culture that I truly can’t grasp, why is it so popular….?
Good on Wemby for speaking up
Agreed that culturally we’ve (sports fans) have just all gone way overboard with it. The game is secondary now I’ve seen it with my own eyes in the ballparks and nhl arena where guys have to check their lays on 3 diff apps across a dozen games while pretending to be present for the game they are at.
“On the court antics” and all he does is express himself 🤣 grow a 🍐 he’s the future goat of basketball
Flagrants and dirty play is expressing one self now get draymond on that
I’m as big of a San Antonio homer as they come, but Wemby elbowed the shit out of Naz Reid and deserved way more blowback than he got. Plus he tried to shove Brunson to the floor in the Finals. He can be a dirty player, and I hope he cleans that up.
Not even a Spurs fan, but are we just collectively ignoring the fact that Wemby was getting mauled the whole playoffs and the refs weren’t calling shit?
What he did with Brunson wasn’t cool at all, but I understand why he might loose his head with Naz, and I’m surprised he didn’t have more moments like that honestly.
Both of those things can be true, imo. He was absolutely getting mauled, but he also cocked back, looked Naz Reid in the face, and swung his elbow hard with ill intent. Getting mauled isn’t ok, but that doesn’t justify what he did.
Id rather have that emotional side showing , than be a nonchalant “just a job” player. Hope Wemby starts pressing these kids that think hes soft. Draymond learnt, Naz learnt, whos next?
Brother, he kung-fu’d Naz Reid in the jaw.
We being intentionally delusional? Kid had some dirty plays last post season. Doesn’t make him a dirty player but he definitely has plenty of room to mature and grow.
Edit: spelling
I love the Spurs and love Wemby but those were not good plays. Not unprecedented (Kareem, Shaq, Hakeem all punched guys early on), but not defensible at all.
I know a wolves fan is not talking about dirty plays…
Yes because if you are a fan of certain teams you no longer have eyes and can’t comment on someone making a dirty play? Lose me with that straw man bullshit.
He made a fool of himself with some of those playoff fouls. Realistically he should have been suspended for a game as-is, but the league gave him a pass. Then he went out after that and basically forced them to suspend him if there’d been a Game 6.
Wemby definitely has some maturing to do if he wants to be in those conversations.
that’s my goat
Wemby based
I like Wemby even more now 👏👏👏
That’s why he’s the GOAT
I want to hate him. Wemby just let me hate you
My love for Wemby grows more and more each day
This is actually huge. I love this guy. Him saying that essentially shames all of the current and prospective players who are thinking of taking a sponsorship like this. I know people will respond “they have no shame” but they might now that Wemby declared open season on them. Fans will get on board with it now too.
Doubt. Kobe was a rapist while general public is anti-rape. Was he vilified? No. Are pro-gambler players going to be vilified?
Your Kobe example is an extreme example, and to answer your question, yes, he was vilified. He was able to rebuild his image over a long period of time, but he initially was shamed, and he probably lost potential endorsement opportunities at the time everything was happening. You have to remember he was projected to go to trail, and if found guilty, he would have done a long stint in prison.
Michael Vick is another athlete who was beloved before his legal troubles. After serving time in prison, it took a long time for him to rebuild his reputation, but it seems like Vick has successfully done that over time.
Our society is far beyond cooked. Ethics and morals went out the window a long time ago. The dollar is king and always will be. People will suffer at the expense of the dollar until the end of time in our crapitalist culture.
The gambling industry took pharma’s playbook for manufacturing the opioid crisis and said let’s run it back
2016 was when it started snowballing downhill. That’s a fact, not an opinion.
I thought that too but left it out so I wouldn’t get a bunch of bots in my comments defending the orange pedo lol
FUCK LEBRON AND GIANNIS, SUPPORTING EVIL COMPANIES WHILE BEING MULTIMILLIONAIRES
One of them is a billionaire. You don’t get that rich with morals and integrity
Lebron would still be a billionaire without the sports book. Some billionaires are ethical, rare but very possible.
But virtue of holding onto that wealth you are not ethical. Even if we pretend making it all is, you should donate to just not be a billionaire. Hoarding the wealth is unethical.
It’s not your place to tell anyone to donate their hard earned money. It’s not unethical NOT to donate to charity. Taylor swift is a legit billionaire who does a lot of charity and pays her workers.
While some of the older guys seem to be too far gone(lebron, giannis etc), i hope wemby can inspire some of the younger guys to avoid these companies. he rlly seems to be a good dude
Lebron being a billionaire and still doing cheap ads for gambling company’s is depressing. How much money is enough man? Come on
If he becomes the face of the league professional sports will be better for it
damn it Wemby I’m trying to hate you but there you go being a sensible human being again
Massive W take.
W wemby
LeBron James ignoring ethics and morals to make money? Say it ain’t so, that’s soooooooo unlike him cough China cough
And not just him, but KD, Curry, etc.. shameful that people who already have more money than they ever need will shill for anything if it means making even more. Embarrassments
Talk your moral shit, King.
So glad this guy is the next face of the league. The greed of these multi millionaires supporting and getting paid by these sports betting companies is vomit inducing. Wemby is once again on the right side of history.
The leagues absolutely getting kick backs from these companies so let’s cancel the league too. And all the other professional sporting leagues around the world. Truly sickening.
Keep licking the boot bro it’s gonna trickle down. I never said they should cancel it. I enjoy the NBA. I just find greed to be a particularly gross caharcter trait
Don’t threaten me with a good time
Love to see this. The fucking kalshi, polymarket, etc. ads are a fucking disgrace. ‘Its not gambling, its a prediction market’ angle is comical. These rats will do whatever they to bankrupt the general public.
Sorry but how are they any difffernt from draftkings and fanduel?
I guess they aren’t, but the two you mentioned at least advertise as sports betting instead of veiling it as something different. Still blows me how quick we went from announcers not even being allowed to mention point spreads to injecting player props at each timeout.
Agreed, and I also think it’s very sad that leagues are supporting it. All it’s doing is making money on the backs of people who are either addicted, stupid, or don’t mind losing money. It’s quite sad all around. And yes, I understand people do make money gambling, but it’s a minority and majority of people fund that.
About time someone in sports takes a stand against this.
Awesome. I wish more players would speak up on this. Lebron and others should be ashamed of themselves.
LeBron is the Snoop Dog of the NBA. He’ll take a paycheck from anyone, morals be damned.
Most players will, stop putting these players on a pedestal.
I’ll take any motherfucker’s money if he’s giving it away.
I been a Wemby fan, and every social issue he has spoken has only strengthened that affinity! The kid gets it!
I miss the days when pro hoopers would sell us McDonalds, Sprite, and Kia
And HEB
The spurs will always (barring something massively drastic) be supported by HEB
GOAT SHIT
Based Wemby as usual
It’s so amusing how a lot of these overseas guys are much more humble and have better morales. Thanks merica
Not surprising considering half of Americans (or more) love Trump
Genuinely based
Average Victor W
Thank you Victor