Renowned troublemaker Rudy Gobert angered another group of people on Friday night, viz T’d get up is not news in itself, it is what the Frenchman has done to obtain a technical contribution that is interesting. In the final seconds of the Cleveland-Minnesota game, with his team ahead by a point, the Timberwolves center was whistled for his sixth foul, and on his way off the field he gave the referees the money signs that Johnny Manziel had made famous.
Darius Garland got the freebie and sent it to overtime, where the T-Wolves were outscored 16-7 and suffered a 113-104 loss. It was the second straight game for Gobert’s already undermanned team, and afterward he acknowledged his mistake but said the gesture was genuine.
“My reaction, which I think is the truth – it’s what I really believe in – even if it is the truth, it wasn’t the right time for me to react like that.” Gobert said afterwards. “I shouldn’t have done that. I cost my team the game and obviously they couldn’t wait to give me a technician. That was bad. That was an immature reaction.”
When asked to clarify his stance, the 11-year-old center referred to the legalization of sports betting in the United States.
“I’ll bite the bullet again” Gobert said. “I’ll be the bad guy. I accept the fine, but I think it is detrimental to our game. I know the bets and all that are getting bigger, but it shouldn’t feel like that.
“I made some mistakes. I did an airball dunk. Mistakes happen. Referees also make mistakes. But sometimes I think it’s more than just mistakes. I think everyone in this league knows it. I think it has to get better.”
Expect NBA commissioner Adam Silver to be happy to fine him, because this is the same league that had to fire a referee for doing exactly what Gobert implied last night. Tim Donaghy, Tim Donaghy, Tim Donaghy. Sorry, I’m just writing this three times quickly to make sure it’s safe to mention his name.
It’s only a matter of time before another match-fixing scandal occurs. More details about it only became known this week Team employee who embezzled $22 million from the Jacksonville Jaguars. While Amit Patel’s actions had no impact on the integrity of gaming, his lawyer said “99 percent” of the stolen funds were used to fuel his client’s gambling addiction.
There needs to be more oversight from sports franchises and college programs since there are now paper trails due to sports betting apps. Leagues and franchises should know whether a team employee has hundreds of thousands or even millions in gambling debts, and the same goes for the companies those leagues do business with. I mean, my God, Patel played with the Jags’ CORPORATE CREDIT CARD. That should have raised some sort of flag.
I don’t want to reinforce virtue signaling any further and I won’t because I don’t have to. Since sports betting has become legal and more accessible across America, we have seen an increase in incredibly stupid behavior from coaches, players and gambling addicts. There hasn’t been another Donaghy situation yet, although I should mention that the former NBA referee admitted to a gambling problem during the subsequent court case that led to his 15-month prison sentence.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Rudy Gobert is right. One shouldn’t feel that betting is harming the sport, but this feeling is becoming more and more common.