NBA 2K League banned Basil Rose for Gambling Violation

By
- Tweet
- Pin It
Updated: September 20, 2019
1774

The National Basketball Association (also known commonly as the NBA) and the Take Two Interactive (which is a famous American video game holding company) have come together to announce on the 9^th of February, 2017 the launch of the NBA 2K League (commonly referred to as the NBA2KL). After the inaugural season of this league took place in 2018, the Knicks emerged to be the first winners of this league, which had attracted immediate popularity among the mass. This was also made possible due to the reason that as high as seventeen out of the total thirty teams that were participating in the NBA had their own teams tailored for the NBA 2K League. Back on the 18^th of April, 2018, Twitch- a popular platform for live streaming – announced a partnership with the NBA 2K League which promised the live streaming of all the games taking place as a part of the 2K League. Currently, there are a total of 21 teams participating in the NBA 2K League.

Gambling is a very serious issue in the sporting scenario of the United States, and it is applicable even when it comes to the NBA 2K League. Although very popular and widely practiced, gambling and online betting has its limitations and restrictions as well. Some of the major sporting leagues have placed official bans from their side when it comes to such practices. In the US, there has been major institutional ban on sports betting (online and in person) starting from the 1960s. After many legislative changes and regulatory shifts, some of the states in the country have legalized betting on different sporting events. These include states such as Nevada, Delaware, Montana, and Oregon. These were also the states which were very much in support of the legalization of these practices, and were therefore exempted from the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (also known as PASPA) of 1992. Currently, 14 states and territories in total have legalized online sports betting and gambling to a complete or partial extent when it comes to the gambling scenario of the United States.

Also Read: NBA adopts new Mental Health rules for teams

However, in this context, it is also very important to look at what is the stance of the National Basketball Association, or the NBA, in context of such betting practices. It is a fact that the National Basketball Association was once quite active and instrumental in preventing the relaxations over laws surrounding sports gambling. The current commissioner of the National Basketball Association- Adam Silver- had become the very first major sports leader who broke from the formal opposition of their previous administration’s stance in reference to gambling. In the year of 2014, he had stated in the op-ed of the New York Times that “I believe that sports betting should be brought out of the underground and into the sunlight where it can be appropriately monitored and regulated.” Later, in 2017, when the support for the legalisation of online sports gambling was gaining momentum, he further confirmed his belief, stating that legalised sports betting, in one way or the other, is inevitable.

Just a couple of weeks back, it was announced by the NBA 2K League that the Miami Heat Check gaming power forward Basil, or ‘24K dropoff’ Rose, was banned and dismissed from further joining any of the teams which are participating in the league. Heart Check Gaming had finished in the 17^th position (out of 21 teams) with the record of 6-10 in the recent 2019 season of the NBA 2K League. On the other hand, in the 2018 season, Heart Check gaming has entered the finals of the playoff matches, and Rose had played an important part in ensuring the same. This disqualification was carried out due to a violation of the league’s gambling policy, which is something the NBA 2K has always been very openly strict about. The official press release by the League mentioned that there was an investigation which was been carried out against Rose. The said investigation had also proved that he was continuously providing several ‘inside information’ to somebody who he was aware of placing bets on the games of the NBA 2K league. However, the League also adds on, in the same release, about how no compromise was made with the ethics and integrity of the games. This is clear from their statement which mentions that Rose was not found guilty for attempts of match fixing or any other similar illegal and improper activities. When it comes to the team to release an official statement regarding this ban, the Heart Check gaming has proclaimed in a recent statement of their that they “believe in the spirit and integrity of the competition”, and that they firmly “stand behind the league and its ruling”. However, Rose is yet to make any statement about this matter.