Kyrie Irving’s interactions with fans in Boston during Sunday’s Game 1 between the Celtics and Brooklyn Nets caused quite the stir and may even get him fined. It was also a scene that anyone could have predicted.
From his time as a player in Boston to his sage-assisted return last season and everything in between, Irving’s rocky relationship with the city and fanbase created an expectation of heckling, and that’s exactly what he got. Irving responded in kind, a completely understandable reaction considering he had people shouting obscenities at him.
However, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski thinks there’s another layer to the player-fan relationship that isn’t getting enough attention: sports betting.
Here's Woj talking about this subject on "NBA Today"#NBAPlayoffs #NBATwitter https://t.co/uR5T5YnZIx pic.twitter.com/2oFwvFilfM
— 𝙏𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙞𝙣’ 𝙉𝘽𝘼 (@_Talkin_NBA) April 18, 2022
“As gambling becomes more prevalent in the arena, people gambling on almost everything that goes on with a game, and they’re drinking…players, organizations — and you talk to them — they already feel it in the arena,” Wojnarowski said. “And when people are losing money in real time, and they’re pointing to a player on the court and say, ‘Hey, I bet you to score more points in the second quarter than somebody else and I lost.’ You’re adding an element to that that we’re not talking as much about but is a real factor in this league.”
Woj goes on to predict that fans will become more “vitriolic” towards players, and he’s probably right. It’s already present on social media where fans bombard players after gambling losses and even wins sometimes. But as more arenas offer mobile betting—and set up sportsbooks inside their own walls—allowing fans to place those bets in real time will lead to more opportunities for face-to-face interactions with players. Sometimes with the added influence of liquid courage,
As we’ve seen in recent years with situations involving Russell Westbrook and Isaiah Thomas, among others, some fans are already inclined to take trash-talking to levels it never needs to go. That becomes just a little more dangerous when money is on the line as opposed to simple bragging rights and pride.
I would say I hope it doesn’t come to this, but if Woj is already hearing from players and others around the league that it’s already happening, then it’s too late for that. The best thing now is for the NBA to monitor these interactions and come up with a solution that works for all parties before it’s too late.