r/nba • u/GGTae Spurs • 1h ago

[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..."

https://bsky.app/profile/mikefinger.bsky.social/post/3mwteasurdc2j

Just asked Victor Wembanyama if he’d ever consider 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. .. Everybody does whatever they want, but without me.”

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u/johnla Knicks 1h ago

So here's the question. What age are the fans of Lebron? Are younger kids really looking at Lebron as a model like that anymore? I'm an old head so I'm asking this question sincerely.

When I was younger the Rapper Nas who was in his twenties refused to promote beer and alcohol. He didn't want to steer his fans into that. But now he's in his 50s and his fans are mostly middle aged. They're not really any young Nas fans. Nas promotes Hennesey. His thinking is that his fans are mature enough now to not blindly follow a celebrity.

Anyways, that's probably the question I need answered that will dictate how I feel about Lebron and Polymarket. If you're an old head like me and start to gamble because of Lebron. Well, i feel for you. But I'm not going to be a degenerate gambler just because Lebron said so.

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u/afrothundah11 30m ago

The concern is normalizing it

It’s less about kids saying “WOW Bron gambles, I want to as well”

And more about “everybody gambles so it’s not a big deal I’m going to try”

Bron is seen as morally wholesome relative to other athletes, so he is very useful for gambling companies to normalize the addiction. You see it with alcohol as well, it’s socially acceptable to talk about drinking, but you don’t talk about your heroin addiction at the dinner party, even though both can destroy your life.

Because ads are now everywhere and so are sponsorships the next generation will just think gambling is just part of a normal day.

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u/trimble197 13m ago

Thing is that it’s already been normalized. Kids gamble when playing Pokemon or Yugioh. I remember back in the 2000s when classmates would say “bet money” when playing a game

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u/fuocoso Spurs 56m ago

Hadn't thought of it that way but you're right, I wonder if he made that distinction. I'd say it's a bit more complicated since he's involved in the school stuff in Ohio so he is still linked to being a good role model for kids.

I've been struggling with it because I'm a big Bron fan, I still haven't figured out how to feel about it frankly. That being said, my kids are gonna be Wemby fans so I have the latitude to think more about it.

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u/Low-Audience7151 47m ago

It came out that LBJ used none of this own money to build that school. He just slapped his name on it like Donald Trump used to do

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u/bass2mouth44 Lakers 44m ago

Lmao yes I’m a lakers fan in his late 20s but know a bunch of younger guys 15-20 that love LeBron and weren’t even lakers fans.

They liked him more than me lol

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u/BrocoliAssassin 11m ago

he’s still marketing a poisonous product that has horrible effects for people that use and don’t use it.

If anything, being older should have told him it would still be a bad idea.